The Protector
by the-writer1988
Summary: Sequel to 'Dangerous Games'. Hurt and damaged from his experiences at the hands of Count Dooku, Obi-Wan seeks healing on the planet of his birth. When the still-at-large General Grievous attacks Stewjon, Obi-Wan must put aside his fears of wielding a Jedi's blade and become the protector he was born to be.
1. Chapter 1: Place of Birth

**Hello everyone! Welcome to the sequel of 'Dangerous Games'. I hope everyone will enjoy the continuation of the story!**

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**Title: **The Protector

**Author: **the-writer1988

**Rating: **T

**Characters: **Obi-Wan Kenobi, Qui-Gon Jinn's voice/ghost, Anakin Skywalker, Ahsoka Tano, General Grievous and several original characters.

**Summary:** Hurt and damaged from his experiences at the hands of Count Dooku, Obi-Wan seeks healing on the planet of his birth. When the still-at-large General Grievous attacks Stewjon, Obi-Wan must put aside his fears of wielding a Jedi's blade and become the protector he was born to be.

**Notes:** This is a sequel to 'Dangerous Games'. It is probably best to have read that story first, however the events in 'Dangerous Games' will be covered in this story, so if you'd like to read this one without reading 'Dangerous Games' then please do so, as eventually everything will be made clear.

**Disclaimer: **The mouse owns Star Wars. I just like to play in it.

**One: Place of Birth**

Stewjon.

The planet was just within the Republic borders, a colony world for humans who had migrated to the system thousands of years ago. It was mostly a farm-world, a simple people who provided small trade to the outlying systems and parts of the Galactic Republic. Parts of Stewjon were home to a rare form of alloy that could be used to build star-ships, so the planet was considered an important asset to the Republic.

It had been an inspection by a visiting Jedi Knight to discuss trade routes with other systems that they had found a Force-sensitive child, his parents being the director of operations for trade. The young boy, barely two years old had been tested for Force-sensitivity and strength; the Jedi Knight informing the boy's parents that he had a high sensitivity to the Force, and it was their decision whether they gave their son to the Knight to take back to the Temple to train him as a Jedi.

Hovering above the planet in his Jedi starfighter, Obi-Wan Kenobi knew his parents had chosen to give him to the Order. As a child and then a young Knight, he had been glad of their decision to let him go. He couldn't have imagined being other than a Jedi Knight.

But now…

Now he wasn't so sure.

Once Obi-Wan had been a Jedi Master of the Jedi Council, a Jedi General in the Grand Army of the Republic, and now he felt lost and confused.

He sighed. There was no point in thinking about the past; getting pulled up in his memories of what Dooku had done to him, what he had nearly succeeded in completing. Obi-Wan guided his starfighter down into the atmosphere; slowing down as he neared the smallest spaceport Stewjon had on offer. He didn't want to go to the larger, open city. A Jedi coming to Stewjon had always been a big deal.

Yes, he was using his Jedi starfighter but he hoped that it wouldn't be recognised for what it was. He had tried to disguise it by getting it painted at a space-port on his way through the Minos Cluster, a system in the Outer Rim Territory which was on the border of the Mid Rim. Without a droid to programme in his hyperspace routes he had overshot his intended system and had taken advantage of the space-station, using it to refuel his ship and get it serviced and painted before continuing his journey to Stewjon.

He lowered his starfighter onto her landing struts in a small side-hanger, switching off the engines and opening the cockpit. He climbed out of the ship, grabbing his one bag of items and hoisting it over his shoulder as he began to walk away from the ship. Reaching the door of the small hanger and stepping through, Obi-Wan programmed in a passcode into the pad attached to the other side of the door. Only he would be able to access this hanger if he wanted to. He would pay for the docking fee with the minimal amount of credits he had on him.

He checked into spaceport security and given clearance to leave, Obi-Wan stepped out of the space-port and onto a grassy plain. A road lay ahead of him and he began to tread along it. He didn't know where he was going or what he intending on doing here.

Qui-Gon's spirit had suggested this place to him and he had obliged. Leaving Coruscant, leaving the Order and leaving Anakin behind had been difficult for him but he had felt that he needed to. Obi-Wan mooched along the plains following the road. He didn't even have a plan for this planet. He had just blindly come here on Qui-Gon's word.

_You are here because it is a peaceful planet, unaffected by the Clone Wars. It is the place you need to heal. _

Obi-Wan rolled his eyes at that. "I didn't think of settling in one place."

_No, but you do have family here. Family who have not seen you since you were a small baby, _replied Qui-Gon.

"They don't know me," said Obi-Wan shortly. "I can't just barge in to their lives and expect a welcome home."

_On the contrary that is exactly what you will get. _

"I suppose you are prodding me in the direction of my family because you think they can help me?" he had to ask this because he didn't want to burden anyone with his troubles. Talking about what he had been through with people who were his parents but were no more than strangers to him was not what he had had in mind when he set off on this trip. He was only here because Qui-Gon had suggested it.

_They can help you but only if you let them. _

Obi-Wan sighed.

_It will take time for trust to be established. _

"But it can happen," Obi-Wan finished. "I don't know where they live. They could be anywhere on this planet." Of course Stewjon had quite a small population so it would probably be easy for him to track them down. He carried on walking.

After a while, a small town appeared on the horizon. Land-speeders zoomed in and out of the village, and small children were running in the long strands of grass laughing jovially at their antics. The sun was burning down upon the plains in the midday heat.

Dressed in a simple outfit, mainly baggy trousers and a shirt, he walked towards the village. His Jedi robes that he had departed Coruscant in had been left inside his Jedi star-fighter. To heal he needed to disassociate himself with what he had once been. He hadn't renounced his place in the Jedi Order, he just felt that he couldn't be there presently. It was the way he was convincing himself that he would return to Coruscant.

Obi-Wan walked through the small town. The houses were made of strong timber and as he walked through, a woman called out to him.

"Hey, stranger! I haven't seen you around here before!"

Obi-Wan turned to face the woman who was stepping out from a taller timber house. She wore a plain plaited skirt, the shirt covering her chest neatly. Her face was bright and cheerful, her blue eyes shining brightly.

"I just arrived," he answered carefully.

"Have you come far? We don't get many visitors out here in the plains. They tend to go straight to the main hub!" the woman sounded quite excited to have a visitor in her small community.

Obi-Wan assumed the main hub referred to the bigger spaceport and main city. Did he want to say where he was from? "Just the core," he replied, not wanting to let on that he was from Galactic centre. "I'm looking for someone." He didn't exactly know where his family was based. The minimal information that the Jedi Council had on his records was that his family were quite prominent on Stewjon for being directors of the trade industry, but it had been stated they made it a habit to live in the open country, which was another reason for his decision to avoid the main city. Unless things had changed in the ensuring thirty-five years since he had been taken into the care of the Jedi Order…

"Oh, I'm sure I can help you find them," said the woman.

Obi-Wan bit his lip. "I'm looking for the Kenobi family." If they were well known then it was likely this woman did know of his family.

"Ben and Lau-rie Kenobi? They live not too far from here. Their son, Owen, is now the director of trade operations." She pointed to a hill on the horizon, past the end of the village. "They live on an estate about a five mile walk from here. I can get you a speeder if you like?"

Obi-Wan shook his head. "No thank you…?" he left his sentence hanging, hoping that the woman would get the hint.

"Soreen," she replied. "My name is Soreen. If you need any help while you stay on Stewjon, I'll be happy to help."

Obi-Wan smiled graciously. "Thank you. You've been very kind." He made a slight bow to her, and then turned and started to walk away, hefting the pack higher on his back.

"Good luck!" Soreen called after him.

He acknowledged her over his shoulder and continued on his path.

* * *

It took him another four hours in the blazing sunshine to walk the five miles to the Kenobi estate. He didn't want to rush there; he was quite enjoying the warm fresh air blowing on his face. His beard was growing back and his hair getting longer so that strands fell into his eyes. The scar on the right side of his face that Dooku had given him was partially hidden by the hair growth. It was a cruel reminder of what Dooku had done to him to turn him to the dark side.

He shuddered as that thought coursed through him. The Count had very nearly succeeded. Part of the reason he had chosen to take a break from the Jedi Order was so that he could come to terms with that, could think through and accept what the Count had forced him to do. He still believed he hadn't deserved the forgiveness of the Jedi Council, nor the forgiveness of Anakin Skywalker and Padmé Amidala, not after what he had done, what he had tried to do…

Guilt welled up in him and he fought it back. Moping about the past wasn't going to help him.

As the sun began to fall, Obi-Wan crossed the top of a hill and looked down onto the plains. Ahead of him was a waist high fence that appeared to stretch for quite a few miles. There was a large house settled in the middle of the fenced area, about half a mile away. The house was unlike any property that he had seen so far on this world. It wasn't like the simple and small townhouses that he had seen earlier that afternoon, no, this house showed the wealth of his family.

The house had four floors and the ground floor stretched out further to the side connecting to what he assumed was a second built on house. It was like a granny-annexe but one that was well equipped for housing a large family. That too had at least three floors, large windows dotted around the walls, shining in the sunlight as it descended.

Obi-Wan started down the hill, mentally preparing himself to meet the family he could barely remember.

* * *

There was a path that led from an open gate up to the front door of one of the houses. Obi-Wan followed it, stopping at the red metallic door. He felt nervous; worried that he shouldn't be here. This people didn't know him. He was just a stranger to him.

_You've come this far. You are not running away again. _Qui-Gon gently prodded him in his head.

Obi-Wan scowled. Rolling his eyes he pressed the call button on the left hand side of the door. A short bell rung inside. _Happy now? _He retorted back at his Master. He couldn't exactly flee far enough away if he suddenly got cold feet.

The door opened and an elderly woman stood there, her auburn hair greying in long strands. Her eye colour was the same as his and she wore a long dress that ran down to just below her knees. As she saw him she gasped, her hand flying to her mouth.

"Hello," he said.

She recognised him. Judging by the expression on her face and the delight shining in her eyes, she knew who he was. He didn't exactly know what to say. He had just randomly turned up on his parent's doorstep.

"Obi-Wan?" the woman who was his mother gently asked, shock and surprise still evident on her face.

He inclined his head respectfully. He felt uncomfortable at the notion of calling her 'mother'. He could barely recall what she looked like, let alone connect with her in the way a son was supposed to do. What was he supposed to say? Probably the simplest answer would be suffice. "I decided to come for a visit, to meet my family." The last thing he wanted to do was to worry his mother over his mental state, though he disagreed with the notion that there was anything wrong, he just felt that he needed to think things through before he could even attempt to return to the life he had once led.

And then the woman pulled him into a hug. "My little boy, all grown up." She pulled away from him, searching his face. "I can't believe you are here…"

Surprised at the hug, Obi-Wan had nearly reacted by pulling away but he had decided not to. This was what families did. He shrugged his shoulders, still feeling awkward, still out of place. "Forgive me for surprising you. I should have called ahead." Retrospectively he should have done just that but it hadn't even occurred to him at the time he had departed Coruscant, nor when he had touched up his ship in the docking station.

His mother smiled gently at him. "It's a nice surprise. A mother likes to be surprised by her children. I never thought I'd see you again. I've seen your image on the holonet a few times… I am so proud of you and of what you have achieved."

Coldness enveloped him. How much did she know?

"When we heard about the clone war I stopped watching, I didn't want to know. I didn't want to hear that you had been killed… I would have regretted giving you to the Jedi Order. I am so glad you are safe."

Obi-Wan felt uncomfortable. Sure he was safe for now, but what he had seen, what he had done had scarred him deeply inside. He didn't let it show on his face, he didn't want to worry her. It wouldn't be fair on her.

"Come on, come inside. Ben and Owen are out at the moment but you can meet the rest of the family!" his mother beamed.

Anxiety fluttered inside his stomach. His mother had elected to not watch the holo-news but who else in his family still did? His defection to the Separatists, for only a brief period, had been made public, but what if other members of his family believed him to be a traitor to the Republic, to the institution he had grown up in?

With worry quivering away in his gut, Obi-Wan followed his mother inside.

**To be continued…**

**Please let me know what you think! **

**So, here we are the first chapter of my new story 'The Protector', the sequel to 'Dangerous Games'. This chapter was just to set up the first part of this story, which involves Obi-Wan's family. Yes, I chose to name his father 'Ben', it seemed a good idea as he must have got it from somewhere. It was stated in the Jedi Apprentice books that Obi-Wan has a brother named Owen so he will be making an appearance. There are very brief details about Obi-Wan's family: they are quite a wealthy family which is why they have quite a large home and land. **

**Stewjon? Nothing is known about that world so I'm just using my creative liberty to hopefully create a realistic world and community throughout this story.**

**And Qui-Gon's ghost/voice is going to be spending a lot of time talking to him from the netherworld. Anakin is going to come into this story much later on which is why he is listed under the characters for this story but it will be a while before he turns up. **

**Next chapter: **Obi-Wan meets the rest of his family.

**I don't know when the next chapter will be up. I am away next week but if the next chapter is written and completed before this Sunday then I will post Sunday night, if not, it will have to wait until I'm back. **

**Until next time,**

**the-writer1988 **


	2. Chapter 2: Family

**A/N) Wow, I wasn't expecting the feedback I got for this story! Thank you to everyone who reviewed! I'm posting a day earlier then I thought I might be able to, only because I'm actually going away tomorrow instead.**

**This chapter was a bit difficult to write as it introduces Obi-Wan's family and hopefully sets up who are going to play a bigger role in this story.**

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**Two: Family**

Obi-Wan walked into lightly painted hallway. Placed sporadically along the hallway were pictures of what he could only assume were his family. His mother led him into a brightly lit room, the setting sun shining into the room through the open windows, and the different colours of the room made it feel homely. Red, blue, yellow and green stood out, the room offering a taste of how his family were vibrant in life.

"Please, sit down," his mother said. She turned to leave. "I'll go and find the others."

Obi-Wan obediently sat down, placing his pack on the floor at his feet, still feeling rather out of place. The sofa was comfy and the colour of it contrasted nicely with the four other colours. His eyes fell on a photograph attached to the wall in front of him. The image was of four people, one of them was his mother though at a much younger age. The two children in the photo, one barely more than a year old was held in his mother's arms, the second child who appeared to be about two years old stood grinning next to his father, showing a mouthful of baby teeth, grinning broadly. A warm feeling swept through Obi-Wan as he realised the older child was himself.

He had very vague memories of playing with a very small boy in a field but that was all he could recall of his family before being given to the Order.

His mother returned to the room; walking along behind her were six people. There was a young woman who looked remarkably like his mother, a man who he could only presume was the woman's husband and with them were four small children ranging from the ages of about four to ten years. He quickly stood up and bowed, not able to get out of the Jedi habit of bowing before dignitaries. To be fair, the Kenobi family were wealthy, so it was probably only right for him to bow before them.

"Obi-Wan, this is Rena, your sister," his mother introduced them.

Rena smiled at him. She had the same eyes as him but instead of auburn hair, she had brown; a fringe settled on her forehead just about her line of vision. "Hello. You won't remember me. I wasn't born when you left."

He felt slightly in shock. He had a sister: a younger sister. "Erm… hello."

Rena turned to the man next to her. He was quite broad, taller than Obi-Wan, and he had powerful green eyes that sparkled. "This is Brofrid Denupe, my husband."

The man stepped forward, taking Obi-Wan's hand and shook it enthusiastically. "So you are the famous Jedi? Rena always told me that her older brother was taken by those mystics in the Republic! I didn't believe her until you got yourself a profile during the clone wars!" he joked, easing Obi-Wan's concerns that his brief defection would have caused problems.

"It's nice to meet you Brofrid," replied Obi-Wan.

"Call me Bro," his sister's husband returned. "Brofrid sounds so _old_."

"Very well, Bro," Obi-Wan tried the name out on his lips, trying to get his head around the concept of calling someone 'Bro' when it was really a shortening for 'brother'. He bent down to face the four children, who all stood shyly in front of him, clutching their parent's hands. "And who are these lovely children?"

Rena laid her hands on the shoulders of the oldest girl, who had long brown hair to her waist and her eyes sparkled green. There was a timid smile on her face. "This is Orwin, my eldest."

"Hello!" the girl perked. "Mum and dad tell me you are my Jedi uncle!"

A small smile came to Obi-Wan's face. "You could say that." He wasn't going to tell them that he wasn't technically a Jedi presently.

"Can I see your laser sword?" the girl jumped up eagerly, beaming brightly at him.

Obi-Wan hesitated but was saved from replying by her mother.

"Orwin, that isn't something a child should be playing with," said Rena, sternly.

Orwin sighed, her shoulders drooping. "Yes, mum."

"I don't have my lightsaber. I left it on Coruscant." That part was partially true. The hilt remained with Anakin, but he had swiped the lightsaber crystal from its place and brought it with him. He didn't know why he had, but it gave him another connection to the Jedi. "I wanted to come here not as a Jedi."

Rena glanced at her husband; clearly they were keeping up with the holonet news on the clone wars, and obviously knew that he had defected for a brief time, but were not judging for it. He felt relieved at that as the pressure on him to try to hide that with everyone wasn't so much. He could at least talk to them about it if he felt he was capable of doing so.

"That is understandable. We all have expectations of you," said Rena. "The children look up to you even though they've never met you. It's because you are a Jedi."

Obi-Wan felt cold. "I'm not perfect. I'm not the ideal role-model."

Rena gently smiled at him. "Oh, I think you are."

Obi-Wan chose not to dispute this. They were likely to find out that he was far from perfect anyway.

"This is Megra, she's only seven, just started the local school," introduced Rena. Megra was blonde with curls, and with green eyes much like her father. She shied away from Obi-Wan, clutching onto her father's hand. "And rather shy."

"I'm not going to hurt you," said Obi-Wan quietly, leaning forward.

"Megra, are you going to say hello?" asked Bro.

Megra shook her head, her blonde curls move around her face as she pressed herself against her father.

Rena laughed gently. "That's all you are going to get out of her, I'm afraid."

"That's ok," replied Obi-Wan. He didn't mind. He was the uncle they had never met before, a complete stranger. If he returned to the Jedi Order, it was likely he would find it difficult to see them. Duty would always come first. Guilt welled up inside him. He was abandoning his duty at the moment – all because he thought he couldn't be a Jedi. He had come here to find healing. But was this the place he really needed to be?

_Don't think like that, _he told himself. _You are here now so make an effort and get to know them. You won't get a chance like this again! _

"And this is Alex Kenobi," said his mother, Lau-rie, pointing to the first boy in line, who had auburn hair and brown eyes. "He is the son of your brother, Owen. Rena and Bro look after him when his father is away on business trips. They are due to return today, however."

Obi-Wan nodded. "Hello, Alex." He held out his hand in an attempt to shake hands, but the little boy shook his head.

"My dad says you are a bad person."

Obi-Wan swallowed.

"Alex!" Lau-rie Kenobi snapped. "How can you say that when your father doesn't even know him?"

A bad feeling settled in Obi-Wan's stomach. Clearly his brother, Owen, was keeping up-to-date with the news on the clone wars and would have undoubtedly heard about his defection.

Alex started to reply but Rena interrupted him.

"This is not the time and place to talk about supposed rumours! Alex, your father's opinions influence you far too much."

Obi-Wan could sense there was some sort of family feud going on that he had inadvertently stumbled into. Clearly his brother and sister had opposing views due to his role in the war. His sister seemed to be on his side whereas his brother Owen was not. Owen's opinions seemed to have influenced his son.

"It's not dad!" the young boy replied quietly. "It's all about mum!"

"Oh, Alex," sighed Lau-rie. "Your uncle Obi-Wan wasn't involved with that."

"You don't know!" the young boy snapped back. "You don't watch the news!"

Lau-rie faltered and looked helplessly at her daughter.

"Bro, can you take Alex back?" asked Rena gently pushing her two girls away as well. "And Orwin and Megra."

Bro nodded, and took Alex's hand. "Come on you." He glanced back at the last and smallest child, still standing beside his mother. "What about Craig?"

"I'll bring him along in a minute," answered Lau-rie. "I'm sure Rena would like to spend some time with the brother she never knew." A gentle smile came to her face.

Obi-Wan watched as Bro led the first three children out of the room, then turned his attention to the youngest; the unease still present in his stomach but he fought to remain in control of his emotions. "So, who is this little boy then?"

The youngest boy had blue-grey eyes, the same colour that Obi-Wan shared with his mother and his sister. Messy brown hair covered his head and he beamed up at Obi-Wan. He looked to be around four years of age. "Hello! I'm Craig!"

"Hello Craig."

"Can you play hide and seek with me?" asked Craig, nearly running away, but Lau-rie grabbed his hand.

"No, not now Craig, it is nearly time for your dinner," answered Lau-rie.

"But I'm not hungry," the boy mopped.

Rena chuckled. "Craig is always like this with any visitors."

Lau-rie hefted the boy up into her arms. "I'll take him round to the others. I'll save some pie for you and Obi-Wan."

"Thank you," he replied, watching as his mother left the room, carrying her youngest grandchild in her arms. He turned to face his sister, who had pulled up a separate chair to sit in front of him. He had a funny foreboding about this conversation. He fidgeted uncomfortably, feeling out of place. A part of him wanted to make a run for the front door. "What is it?"

"I never knew you like Owen did," began Rena, her eyes focused on Obi-Wan's face. "He remembers you, has vague memories of the big brother who protected him when he was small."

Obi-Wan surprised at that. "I was only two when I was given to the Order. Owen would have been just a year old." He wouldn't have thought it possible for Owen to remember him.

"Owen is slightly Force-sensitive. He didn't have enough Force potential to warrant being sought by the Order. He was tested at the same time as you. I think his memories of you have been influenced by his minimal connection to the Force," explained Rena. "When I was little Owen used to tell me stories of you: how much you cared for him, how you were always playing with him… You were a great brother to him. When you left, Owen lost his best friend. And you were nearly three when you were discovered by the Jedi, Owen was nearing two years."

Obi-Wan hadn't known how far from his birthday he had been when admitted into the Order. "Oh. So Owen doesn't like me then?" He had the ominous feeling that this was where the conversation was heading.

Rena sighed, her shoulders drooping. "He does. It's not my place to tell you but Owen lost his wife a year ago. He blames the Jedi for their failure to save her," she swallowed, looking a bit upset. "The Jedi were there on the planet where she was. His dislike of the Jedi extends to you."

"And Alex would have been told this…"

Rena nodded. "Yes. If Owen tells you what happened then I hope you can help him come to terms with it. He misses her a lot. There has been a lot of tension lately between Owen and mum, but mum remains ignorant of the war at large. They are civil to one another in public since neither of them want to split this family up."

"So my coming here was probably a mistake," muttered Obi-Wan. He hung his head. By being here he had the potential to split a family up, all because he was a Jedi.

Shaking her head, Rena answered kindly. "I don't think so. I think the rift can be healed."

Frustration boiled within him. "How much do you know about my profile in the war?" He had to know how much was public knowledge here within his family.

"I don't blame you," began Rena. "I know you briefly defected to the Separatists but it wasn't of your own will. I know that the Republic's Supreme Chancellor was not right in the head –"

Obi-Wan snorted at that. He couldn't help but chuckle at Rena's description of Palpatine. "He was more than that."

"I know he deceived the Republic into thinking that you were to be captured but he really ordered your execution. I know you led many campaigns against the Separatists, winning the majority of them. You were quite the hero. I don't believe you changed sides willingly," she finished.

"I didn't, but I thought I did," he replied quietly. A thought struck him. "Owen believes I'm a traitor, doesn't he?"

Rena nodded. "He does. He doesn't believe anyone could trick a Jedi. He thinks you betrayed the Republic. That and his wife's untimely death has made him dislike you –"

"Hate him actually," a voice interrupted their conversation.

Obi-Wan swallowed. He had sensed someone else approaching the room but he had thought it might be Bro returning.

"Owen," breathed Rena, sounding uncertain.

"So you've finally come back." Owen Kenobi drawled, walking slowly further into the room. He had dark auburn hair falling to his shoulders, a pointed nose and brown eyes. There was a scowl on his face as he entered the room. "My older brother makes his return. Don't think I will treat you favourably like mother will."

Obi-Wan bit his lip but decided to plunge into it. He didn't want to get into a confrontation. "You hate me for something I had no control over."

"Your Republic was there when my wife died! She wasn't even supposed to be there!"

Obi-Wan swallowed, feeling very uncomfortable. What was he supposed to say? "Where was she?" He had a feeling he would regret that.

"Christophsis," answered Owen darkly, his eyes narrowed. "I know you were there! You didn't even manage to save her!"

It had to be a campaign he had been involved in, didn't it? "We tried to evacuate as many of the civilians as possible when we retook the planet. It wasn't possible to save everyone no matter how hard we tried!"

"You should have tried harder!" replied Owen, his eyes glaring at Obi-Wan in anger and resentment. "The Jedi are meant to be the protectors of the galaxy but you failed in that. My wife is dead because your army wasn't strong enough to save her!"

Rena stood up at that and walked right over to her brother, standing in front of him, arms crossed her chest. "How could you? You blame your _brother_ for her death because he is a Jedi and they are meant to protect people like you and I, but you fail to realise that you were the one who sent her there in the first place! Owen, you knew that Kellie did not wish to go because of the unrest in that system! But you told her to go instead of delaying the business meeting until the unrest died down! You blame Obi-Wan and the Republic for your mistakes! And that isn't fair!"

"Rena…" Obi-Wan started, but Owen glared at him over his sister's shoulder.

Owen shook his head. "I can't believe this. I am not to blame for what happened! The Republic didn't even issue an alert to tell people to not even go to the Christophsis system!"

Rena looked disgusted; the tone of her voice said it all. "They could not predict when an attack would happen. They could not stop interstellar travel due to unrest."

"If an alert had been issued, the Separatists wouldn't have attacked," added Obi-Wan quietly. He didn't know for sure but past experiences told him that if the Republic issued an alert to evacuate or not to travel to a certain world, the Separatists wouldn't attack. They would wait for the alert to be removed and then strike at a time when everyone thought that the planet was safe. The Republic's lack of alert to Christophsis had resulted in Owen's wife being killed, despite her own fears about travelling to the planet, she had still done so. She had paid for it with her life.

"There you go, Rena! The traitor admits it! That alert could have saved Kellie!" Owen seemed vindicated by Obi-Wan's information.

"He is not a traitor, Owen," growled Rena quietly.

"He defected to the Separatists!" retorted Owen.

Obi-Wan put his head in his hands. He hadn't expected a complete warm welcoming from every member of his family, but it hurt that Owen, his own brother, the little baby boy that he could just remember, now hated him. He stood up, as if to leave. "I shouldn't have come."

"No, you shouldn't!" snapped Owen. "Get out before you ruin someone else's life!"

"OWEN!" Rena exclaimed. "He is welcome here! It's just you and you irrational hatred of someone you can barely remember is just ridiculous!"

"Your sister is right, Owen," an elder voice interrupted the brewing argument between the two siblings.

Obi-Wan's gaze turned to the older man that had just stepped into the room. White hair covered the top of his head and he had a beard surrounding chin and cheeks. His eyes sparkled in anger as he took in the scene before him.

"Father," sighed Rena with relief, whilst shooting her brother a dark look.

The older man, who could only be Ben Kenobi, his father, walked slowly forward, hands behind his back. "Owen, regardless of what you may believe, Obi-Wan is here to stay. He is family, whether you like it or not. I will not have you drive the son we have waited for a long time to see again away. You may stay in my house providing you don't air your dislike of your brother in front of your mother or anyone else in this family. You are entitled to you opinion, but do you really want to upset your mother? Especially considering how little of the war she knows about?"

The anger in Owen's eyes faded and his shoulders slumped. "No, I don't." He threw Obi-Wan a dirty look. "For the sake of this family, I will remain silent on the subject of my brother. I will be civil."

Ben Kenobi nodded, seemingly satisfied by the results. "Good."

Owen pushed past his sister and father and walked out of the room, his footsteps thundering along the hallway as he traipsed away.

Obi-Wan looked down at his feet, feeling uncomfortable.

"You've probably gathered that I am your father," said the older man.

Obi-Wan raised his head. "Yes, I am. How did you know I was your son? I haven't been introduced to you yet." It was a valid question.

"I have been listening in to the conversation before I stepped in," replied his father. "And you look a lot like I did when I was your age though you have your mother's hair colour and her eyes. You can only be my first-born son." Ben Kenobi held out a hand. "Welcome home, lad. Welcome back."

Obi-Wan shook his father's hands, feeling at least a bit more welcome. "Thank you."

"And don't mind about Owen. He'll come around."

Obi-Wan felt unsure about that but he hoped that his brother would come round to him, otherwise staying underneath a roof where one of his siblings didn't like him could cause tension among a family that he really wasn't a part of. Was it really worth it staying here if his very presence threatened to tear a family apart? He wasn't so sure.

But he would stay for now and see what transpired.

**To be continued… **

**Please let me know what you think! **

**So what have we learnt? Obi-Wan has quite a family around him at the moment… His brother Owen doesn't like him and there is probably going to be a lot of tension around them. I wanted Obi-Wan to have a larger family and who knows how many children his parents would have had after he left? And at Obi-Wan's age, he must have had some nephews and nieces out there… I didn't want it to be just Obi-Wan with his parents and brother… I wanted him to have a sister too. **

**Next chapter: **Obi-Wan learns more about the day he was given to the Jedi Order.

**That little hint may point to a potential situation that will show that Obi-Wan being given to the Order might not have been clear as he once believed… I do like introducing drama. And there will be more interaction between Obi-Wan and his mother. I hope to post again next week. **

**Until then, **

**the-writer1988**


	3. Chapter 3: Kenobi History

**A/N) Thank you everyone for the reviews! Responses are coming. So… in this chapter Obi-Wan learns exactly how he was given to the Jedi Order and learns more about his family's history… Quite nervous about this one due to the history I've created for his family! Hopefully it is believable…**

* * *

**The Protector**

**Chapter Three: Kenobi History**

By the time that Obi-Wan walked into the dining area, his brother Owen and his son had already left. It appeared that his whole family lived the same roof, but having different sections of the large house to their respective family.

His mother had saved him from stew and dutifully handed him a plate. He tucked into the plate, relishing the salty but savoury taste, whilst listening into the conversation. His father, Ben, was discussing with everyone the new agreement he and Owen were working on for trade to Corellia. Though Owen had been named as Director of Operations for Trade for Stewjon, Ben still helped out. Neither of his mother or father were in their seventies, choosing to marry and have children when they were nineteen and twenty respectfully.

Ben still had some years of working left in him but had chosen to pass the role onto Owen five years ago, taking a more limited role. It seemed that the position ran in their family, passed onto the first-born child when the father died, but Ben had broken with that tradition.

Obi-Wan glanced up as Megra mentioned his name.

"Grandad, why didn't uncle Obi-Wan take over your job?" the shiest child asked, avoiding Obi-Wan's eyes.

"Because he has a different path to follow; he is a Jedi which is a path you follow from a young age if you have the potential to be one," explained Ben. "Obi-Wan had that potential so we chose to give him to the Jedi Order. Traditionally the role stays in one family. The next one in line was Owen, then Alex and then your mother."

It sounded like royalty to Obi-Wan, how the heir of succession was chosen.

"I don't think 'gave' is the right word to describe how my brother was given to the Jedi Order," uttered Rena, under her breath, but loud enough that Obi-Wan overheard.

"What do you mean?" he asked. Hadn't his parents given him to the Order willingly? They were the conditions necessary to allow admittance into the Jedi Order.

His mother hastily answered. "It's nothing."

An uncomfortable silence fell over the dinner table, yet Obi-Wan couldn't help but feel that there was something his parents were not telling him, but he wouldn't pursue it, though perhaps he could find out by other means. He continued to eat in silence.

* * *

He had just stepped out of the sani-stream when he heard raised voices coming from further down the corridor from the room he had been given to sleep in. Poking his head out of the sani-stream door, wearing a dressing gown, he tip-toed quietly down the hallway. He knew he shouldn't be eavesdropping on his parent's private conversations but as he moved closer to the room, he recognised Rena as well.

Stopping as close as he dared he listened in, his curiosity overcoming how bad he felt about listening in, Rena's voice came out loud and clear.

" - deserves to know the truth!"

"He doesn't need to know," replied Lau-rie. "He'll be happier not knowing!"

What would he be happier not knowing? Had his parents not willingly given him to the Order?

"We gave out consent in the end, that is all that matters," answered Ben. "Rena, Obi-Wan would only ever need to know if he ever met his uncle and that is unlikely to ever happen."

"That may be true," admitted Rena, "but should know. Doesn't every child deserve to know the truth about their past?"

There was silence from his parents.

"Can you at least think about it?" queried Rena quietly.

Obi-Wan imagined his parents exchanging wearied looks, but then he hears his mother's reply.

"We'll think about it."

Before Obi-Wan's presence was noticed, he slipped away just as Rena exited the room.

Back in his room, he considered the implications of what he had heard.

Had his parents been forced to give him up?

If so, why?

Had they tried to get him back?

And if they had, why had they left him with the Jedi Order?

With burning questions in his mind, Obi-Wan eventually fell asleep, snuggled up under his covers, in the room that he had once slept in as a child, his dreams of a man who looked like his father but wasn't, taking the hand of a small boy and leading him to a Temple of magnificent proportions.

* * *

The following morning, after having dressed in plain tunics, Obi-Wan joined his mother and sister on a trip to the market place. Taking one of the three land speeders that the family owned, they travelled the fifty miles across the hilly landscape to the capital city, Sti. It was the only main city on Stewjon, the rest of the planet's population residing in small towns or villages. Though it had mostly a human population, there were a few other species dwelling in the planet's city.

Sti was the city where Owen travelled each day to the trade offices, along with his father on selected days, when Ben elected to help his younger son.

Obi-Wan sat in the back of the land speeder alongside his mother, while Rena piloted. The scenery was much the same as they sped along, only levelling out when they neared Sti.

As the city came into view, and the tall spires reflected in the sun, Obi-Wan felt a hand touching his arm. He turned to face his mother. The slight lines on her face were crinkled, as if she was struggling whether to ask him what was on her mind.

"What is it?" He wanted to make it easy for her to ask him anything.

"Why did you come back? I've been thinking about it… but isn't there still a war on? I've chosen to avoid all news outlets… though I do hear a few things about it because I simply can't avoid it forever… but I told Rena to let me know when the war ends." Lau-rie's voice was sombre, sad almost, as if she was afraid what his answer would be. "Doesn't the Republic need all the Jedi they can get? There were so many deaths on Geonosis… That's what has made me not want to know…"

Obi-Wan swallowed. How to explain this so as not to worry her more? He had to be truthful however, he could not hide from her the realities of war.

"The war is still on," he admitted, beginning slowly, "however the majority of it is over and the Separatist Council are in negotiations with the Republic. There are some rogue elements of the Separatist army – mainly General Grievous – that need reigning in. Unofficially the war is over, but until Grievous is captured or killed then the Clone Wars cannot be declared officially over." There he stopped. How could he explain to his mother why he was truly here?

She'd find out eventually, as like her, he was hiding a secret, a secret that everyone in his family knew of but out of respect of Lau-rie's wishes they had not informed her.

"I'm here because I need to figure things out. Something happened in the war that I don't feel I can talk to you about yet… I saw and did things that I am not proud of," he continued, more quiet then before. "When I'm ready to explain it, I will, but let's just say I survived to come here again."

Lau-rie nodded, her body slightly shaking. "Then did we make the right choice?" There was sadness in her voice. "I see you have a scar on your cheek. It may be concealed by the beard but nothing can truly stay hidden."

The memory of the scar and what Dooku had inflicted upon him made him shiver. He hated how Dooku had scarred him, how he had tried to use that scar as a means to turn him against Anakin. The Count had ultimately failed.

"You made the right choice," he answered. No matter what had happened to him, his mother and father had made the right one. "I can't imagine not being a Jedi." He just privately hoped that he would be able to return to the Order, if he felt that he deserved that honour.

Lau-rie breathed out a sigh of relief. "Good, I'm glad."

He was tempted to mention that he had overheard their conversation the night before but he decided wisely to not say a word.

Rena piloted the land speeder into the streets of Sti, following Main Street before parking in a free bay close to the Church of Worship.

"I'll go and get the groceries," delegated Rena. "Why don't you and mum browse the market place? There are some very rare items that I think you will appreciate, Obi-Wan. Shall we meet back here in three hours?"

"That's fine," replied Lau-rie, whilst Obi-Wan nodded his approval.

Obi-Wan followed his mother into the market place, while Rena headed off in the opposite direction.

Lau-rie took a left turn down a paved road, past some white painted bollards and into the market place filled with wooden stalls where clothes, toys and the latest technology was on sale for discount prices. There were jewellers, spices and a dozen other items that were going for the lower then average price. His mother led him through the stalls looking at the displays, pointing out various items that she thought he might find interesting, though he hadn't see anything that fitted with Rena's description of rare items.

His mother turned towards him. "The market is open once a week. Traders from off-world come here, taking discount prices because we believe that little money is needed to survive. The traders adjusted their pricing for us when they realised they could make more from us if they reduced the amount of credits they charged for, for certain items. If I buy something from here, I always pay the maximum price since the Kenobi family has always been wealthy that we simply do not deserve to take advantage of the discount prices."

Obi-Wan nodded. That seemed reasonably fair though it surprised him that traders had consented to discount prices. "So, erm, has the Kenobi family always been wealthy?" It seemed strange that the majority of the population were seemingly poor, yet his family were rich, one of the only few families on-world to be like that.

Lau-rie smiled. "This planet used to have a King. Four hundred years ago, Stewjon's people voted in favour of a pure government rather than one person leading the people. Ben is descended from the last King, but when the people chose a government, the government decreed that descendants of the royal blood line would always hold office. They made a constitution that the first heir of the former royal blood would always hold the position of Director of Trade Operations. It was said that the Royals were naturally very good at that role. That is why Ben's job is a role that can be passed down the generations. Technically you would be a Prince."

That explained where the family wealth came from then.

"The land we own was bequeathed to us," added his mother.

Obi-Wan considered this. "If a government hadn't been elected and the sovereignty had continued, as the heir to what I presume would be the throne, would you have given me to the Jedi Order?"

Lau-rie's face wobbled as if she was trying to hide something from him. There was hesitancy in her voice and he suspected that she was lying. "…Yes… Your Force count was quite high. The Council advised us to keep you in training."

Obi-Wan stopped walking through the crowd, gently tugging his mother away from the centre of the street to the side of it. "Wait… the Council advised you? Did you try to take me back?"

His mother nodded only once. "We did."

"Why?" He had to know. Perhaps that was the key to everything?

"Because we saw how happy you were," she answered.

And then something dawned on him, something he hadn't truly considered before. "You didn't give me up originally did you? It wasn't you choice, was it?"

Lau-rie shook her head. "No, we didn't."

He swallowed the limp that had formed in his throat. "What happened?"

Lau-rie bowed her head, her voice lower. "I'd rather not talk about it here, if at all."

Obi-Wan gently took his mother's hand. "I know you don't want to tell me, but I'd like to know, for my own peace of mind," he said quietly. "Ultimately it is your decision, but there are probably records out there if I dig deep enough, am I right?"

Her silence said it all.

He roamed his eyes over the stalls, looking for something that would steer them away from the current conversation. His eyes found an antiques stall and he hasted over to it. Rena was quite correct in stating that there was something he would like as he saw some very old artist hand-drawn images and paintings of the old war between the Sith and the Jedi that had ended a millennia ago. It had been assumed at that point that the Sith must have been destroyed but they hadn't been.

With the images in mind, he smiled gently at his mother and walked over to the antique stalls, his mother following shortly afterwards as he browsed, talking softly with him as he considered whether he should make a purchase or not. When it was time to meet with Rena again, Obi-Wan was relieved as he recognised that his mother was considering whether to open the gates and tell him what she was keeping from him or to let him discover it on his own.

He hoped his parents would tell him; perhaps if they showed willingness to share it might enable him to trust them a bit more than he did now? And he might be more open to talk with them too?

* * *

That evening after a leisurely meal with his father, mother and Rena (Owen had declined the invitation), Obi-Wan was led into the sitting room. Ben and Lau-rie sat together on the sofa, while Rena and Obi-Wan sat on separate chairs.

"As per our conversation earlier this morning," began his mother, "we have discussed what you asked. If you want to know then we will tell you. I'd rather you did not try to find out on your own how you ended up becoming a part of the Jedi Order."

"It wasn't as straight forward as it should have been," said Ben, squeezing his wife's hand.

As soon as he had realised what this conversation would entail, Obi-Wan had decided to not mention that he had overheard their argument the night before. They were lifting the lid on a family secret that they'd rather he did not know.

Lau-rie took a deep breath in. "Even though Ben's family is descended from the old royal line, and that there is a specific role the oldest child must fill… Ben is the youngest child out of the two his father and mother had."

"My brother, Michael," said Ben, leaning forward, his hands on his chin. "He is four years older than me. He had an episode when he was sixteen that required medical help and intervention. He went mad, threatening me and our parents. He got the help he needed to have but as a result of that there was concern whether he would be fit enough to take the role of Director of Trade Operations, so the public voted for me to take the position instead. Michael didn't like that but he assumed that his son would be next in line, but the people also decreed that any heirs that Michael might sire would forfeit the right of the role. It was only one episode of madness and its under control by drugs but the people didn't want to risk it. Personally, I thought Michael was perfectly capable of taking the position – I'd be on hand to help if anything went wrong but the people didn't want to give him the responsibility."

Obi-Wan had a funny feeling that he knew where this tale was going.

"When you were born you were identified as having high Force potential," continued Lau-rie. "We told the Jedi Order we wanted to keep you. They didn't push us to change our minds and accepted that."

"My brother learnt of this and tried to entice us to change our minds. He thought that if you were given away, his own son would be the next in line, regardless of what the public had voted for. Your brother Owen was born a year later but we chose to keep his birth a secret. Having a large amount of land helped us to accomplish that. Owen was tested for Force potential but he did not have enough to gain entrance into the Order," explained Ben.

"We kept Owen a secret because we had the feeling that Michael was going to do something. We tried to carry on with our lives. He couldn't be detained because he hadn't done anything to warrant that. Michael hated the idea that his own children were being overlooked due to his one episode, and Ben worked hard to try to lay the foundations for the role to go back to Michael's children when they were of age. Michael didn't see that. He thought we were behind the public campaign against his children, so he decided to get back at us," continued his mother in a soft voice.

"He thought getting rid of you was the best way to go about it. He didn't want to kill you, just get you out of the way," said Rena. She had clearly heard the story over and over.

"My uncle gave me to the Jedi Order, didn't he?" guessed Obi-Wan. It seemed the most logical conclusion.

Both Ben and Lau-rie nodded sombrely.

"You went to a local nursery every few days. We couldn't seclude you because we were worried, it wouldn't be fair on you. We trusted that Michael wouldn't really act upon his feelings. One afternoon, Ben came to pick you up from nursery and you weren't there. Your carer said that you had been collected an hour before that by Michael. They hadn't stopped it because they didn't know of any upsets in the family, and assumed we had given our permission for you to be collected by him. Michael took you off-world before we could even locate where you had gone," said Lau-rie, tears shimmering in her eyes. "He knew that we had declined your training."

Ben took up the tale, pulling his wife closer. This was an event that had hurt them both deeply. They hadn't been able to protect their child from being taken. Obi-Wan felt sorry for them.

"My brother gave you to the Jedi Order, saying that we had died and that he was your custodian. He even fabricated reports that we had perished in a house fire. He was quite clever in how he made it authentic that the Order took you in. Michael was arrested as soon as he returned to Stewjon but he refused to say where he had taken you. Eventually, after nearly a year he admitted where he had taken you and proclaimed publicly that the position would now go to his oldest child when they were of age, rather then you. With his confession he was charged with abduction and unlawful 'selling' of a child. He was imprisoned for thirty years for his crime and released a few years ago… We haven't seen him since his trial."

"After his sentencing, you visited Coruscant…" probed Obi-Wan. It was likely they had done so as his impressions had been they had decided to leave him with the Order.

Lau-rie nodded sadly. "By that point we had announced Owen's birth. There was no point in trying to hide him anymore. Most of the people had suspected that we had another child but they never said because Stewjon has a policy on privacy. We didn't have to announce his birth if we didn't want to. Ben and I decided to try to get you back as we had the right to as your lawful parents. We travelled to Coruscant and queried with the Jedi Order. They were reluctant to see us before we had proof that we were your real parents. We had the government send us documents and birth certificates as well as the trial of Michael and his conviction. When we presented that evidence, the Jedi Council agreed to see us."

"The Council were sympathetic to us explaining that if they had known that Michael was not your legal guardian then they would never have taken you in. They explained to us you were progressing well in your training and you had a lot of potential to become a great Jedi Knight. It was Master Yoda who said there was something about you, that you had a specific future with the Jedi…" said Ben.

"Master Yoda showed us around the Temple, explaining the training you had received. We saw you in one of your classes, and you didn't recognise us. We saw how intent you were in your training, and how it seemed to be your dream of becoming a Jedi Knight… We made the difficult decision to leave you with the Order," said Lau-rie. "It broke my heart to do so but I knew we couldn't take you away from the Order like that. We signed the relevant paperwork and gave you officially to the Jedi."

"Mum and dad let the Stewjon government know and Owen became the intended successor," added Rena. "Yesterday I said you were discovered by the Jedi Order when you were nearly three… that was true from a certain point of view, in terms of your potential and what you could give to them."

Silence fell between them and Obi-Wan leaned back in his chair, feeling overwhelmed over what he had just heard. He had been given to the Jedi by a disgruntled uncle. It was the last thing he had expected but his mother and father had made the right decision in the end, they had given him to the Order. "I never expected that to have been what happened…"

Lau-rie leaned forward. "Did we make the right choice in letting you stay?"

Obi-Wan hesitated. After what he had suffered through at Dooku's hands was it a good thing his parents had elected to leave him in the care of the Order? He hadn't really considered if being a Jedi had been the right thing for him in the end, but how could he tell that to his parents? "I think so," he finally said. "The war changed me and what I've experienced is why I needed to get away from the Jedi for a while. It's not something I can talk about yet as I'm still trying to figure it out on my own. But I think knowing my past, how I became a part of the Order that shaped me, will be the first step into accepting who I am _now_." At least Obi-Wan had hoped so. He rose from his seat. "Thank you for telling me. I'll be in my room if you need me."

He didn't look back as he walked away. He would soon have to tell them his own story, he knew that, and the Force knew it.

But not yet.

But soon.

And he wasn't looking forward to it one bit.

**To be continued…**

**Please let me know what you think! **

**Ok, so it is probably clichéd that Obi-Wan has an uncle that is not necessarily evil but was a bad person in what he did. Originally his uncle was going to be Ben's twin brother but I thought that was going a bit too far. The whole 'heir' thing, they are still treated like royals even though they are not which is why there are a lot of references to 'heirs' – the population still view the Kenobi family as heirs to a position, even though it isn't mandatory for that role to stay within the family, it just has done. I see a few stories that deal with Obi-Wan's family have him be a prince, but I thought it might be best to do something a bit different, that he is descended from royalty but is no longer royalty, but it also explains his family being wealthy. Hopefully his family history and how he became a part of the Jedi Order isn't too corny… And it injects a little bit of drama into the story as well. **

**Next chapter: **Obi-Wan meditates and Qui-Gon interferes.

**Until next Tuesday! **

**the-writer1988**


	4. Chapter 4: Visions

**A/N) Thank you for all the reviews so far! I'm glad that Obi-Wan's history went down well. Here is the next chapter!**

* * *

**The Protector**

**Chapter Four: Visions**

Meditation was designed to help a Jedi become one with the Force; it was supposed to centre the Jedi and give them a chance to assess the life force of the universe. In Obi-Wan's case it was a guilt trip. He had sunk deep into the flow of the light-side of the Force, trying to ignore the dark tendrils that still remained a part of him due to Dooku's attempted turning of him to the dark side. His eyes were shut and his legs crossed; his concentration causing him to float gently upwards in mid-air.

His mind processed exactly what he had learnt, seeking answers in the Force.

He had been kidnapped, given to the Jedi Order on false pretences but his mother and father had decided to keep him there when given the option to take him home. If they knew what Dooku had done to him they would blame themselves for leaving their son in the care of the Jedi Order. Could he really put them through the emotional agony of that?

_For your own piece of mind you have to tell them. _

Qui-Gon's voice, his former Master's presence echoed in the Force.

Obi-Wan swallowed. "How can it help?"

_An outsider's perspective can aid the emotional healing you are going through. You were always meant to be a part of the Jedi Order, just as you were always meant to be my apprentice, just as you were always destined to train the Chosen One. You were never meant to be just an heir to an old legacy. _

"But Dooku…" moaned Obi-Wan, but was cut off by Qui-Gon before he could complete his sentence.

_Count Dooku was misguided. You survived what he tried to do to you. You did not kill him in anger. His death is not your fault. You are a stronger Jedi then you otherwise would be because of what you have suffered. _

"I cannot burden my family with this. They will judge me like Owen has done. Rena and Bro's support of me is misguided."

_If you believe that then you will believe that Owen's dislike of you is warranted. Owen feels guilty for letting his wife go. He will never forget what he did. As you were on Christophsis, he is lashing out at you because a Jedi is meant to help those in need. We cannot save everyone. That was what Anakin believed – he wanted to save everyone but he couldn't. He lost his mother because he assumed that as a Jedi he could save everyone. He didn't want to believe that a Jedi can suffer loss just as much as a normal person can do. Owen believes that too. In time, he will come to see that, but only if you try to set things right. You were the brother that was there for him when he was a small child and then you were no longer there. It was a loss he couldn't comprehend at a young age. You need to rebuild that bond you had with him. _

"He won't try with me," said Obi-Wan miserably.

_You don't know that until you make the effort. If you want to heal, you've got to take the first step. Others can't do it for you. _There was hesitancy in the Force. _You will need your family. _

Obi-Wan's eyes opened but Qui-Gon's presence was still with him. "What do you know?" There was suspicion in his voice. Qui-Gon had been the one to suggest returning home. What did he know? Did a Force entity have the ability to have a clear view of the future?

Qui-Gon did not reply, choosing to remain silent, but Obi-Wan felt that he had hit onto something. What if Qui-Gon had suggested coming to Stewjon because his people needed him?

Dread welled up inside his stomach, his chest heavy with concern. He wasn't a Jedi. How could he help people when he had failed to help himself?

He closed his eyes again and sunk back into the flow of the Force. Obi-Wan reached out, feeling the soothing motions of the light side bathe him in its splendour. "What shall I do?" he asked the Force, not expecting Qui-Gon to talk to him, and he was right, for he didn't.

Images flashed before his eyes, multiple paths laid themselves out in front him. He saw things that could be, the possible futures flashing past him in a rush of colours; all of these appeared to be the paths he could take, the question was which one?

The first he saw, and the one he wanted to avoid was himself spiralling downwards into depression and darkness, unable to feel that he could share the burden with anyone, not even his family. He would fall further into darkness and be consumed.

The second saw him ignore his past and forget his place as a Jedi, never intending to return to the Temple, and staying on Stewjon where he would live a life of boredom, not being able to help others because he feared if he did he would open himself up to the intricate dark side once more. Again, he would fall.

The third saw him leaving Stewjon, unable to face his family because of Owen's hostility and wondering the galaxy looking for the healing that never came. He would succumb into depression.

The fourth future was different. It was of death. Owen was sobbing in a field, holding his son, whose body was limp, and covered in blood. He was dead. And then he saw the world of Stewjon encased in darkness by Separatist forces. And no one came to its rescue before it was too late. Obi-Wan saw himself watching the fall of the planet from afar, too afraid to help for fear of the darkness inside him, of what he could still do if he tried to emulate a Jedi.

The visions stopped and Obi-Wan felt worry rush through him. Would this happen to him if he didn't get his life back together?

_The fourth future is more set in stone then you think. _Qui-Gon's voice echoed.

"And the other three?" Obi-Wan swallowed.

_It all spirals down to that final vision… _answered Qui-Gon. _You have to take charge. You are a Jedi and always will be. They are the possible consequences of the fourth vision. It is up to you to decide what path you take and how you change it is what matters. _

"I'm not a Jedi," whispered Obi-Wan. "I want to be but how can I be when I embraced the dark side?"

_You didn't do that willingly. It wasn't your choice. If you wallow like this then you will never heal. _

"I can't tell them anything," replied Obi-Wan.

_Yet your mother didn't want you to know how you were given to the Jedi Order but you convinced her to. Doesn't she deserve the same in return from you? _

Obi-Wan stayed silent, his mind jumbled with many thoughts. How could he put his mother through what he had done? She would feel guilty over leaving her son behind when she had had the opportunity to take him back. Was his mother aware of Owen's dislike of him? Did she know that Owen blamed him for his wife's death? Would she side with her younger son if she knew of his true actions?

_She will find out. You are here now. She won't avoid the reports on the Clone Wars now that she knows you are safe. Do you really want her to find out in the worst possible way? Don't you think she has the right to refuse knowledge from you? _Qui-Gon's voice was soft, endearing and understanding. _Just as you had the right to learn how you became a part of the Jedi Order? _

Obi-Wan felt conflicted. Qui-Gon was right. What was stopping him was that he didn't want his parents to feel guilty about choosing to leave him with the Order. Should he really let that affect his own journey to find healing? Didn't he want to feel that he was a Jedi again? Guilt welled up inside him. As a Jedi he should be thinking of others feelings rather than his own. If he told his parents the truth then he was thinking of himself rather than them. How could he still be a Jedi if he told them just so he could feel better? That was selfish.

_Oh Obi-Wan. _Qui-Gon sounded disappointed.

"If I tell them," said Obi-Wan aloud, "I will be selfish. A Jedi isn't meant to be selfish."

_This is not the test which will test your selfishness. _

Obi-Wan swallowed. "I can't do it." He could not put his mother through the pain of believing she had made the wrong choice for her child. He simply could not do it. He had done terrible things, that much was certain. His father and mother did not need to know.

Displeasure rocked through the Force.

"I don't have to tell them to be healed," Obi-Wan said defiantly.

And yet he had the feeling that he was wrong, yet he was too afraid to face his parents over what he had gone through during the war. And a part of him hoped that would change.

* * *

The next day dawned bright and warm, the sun beating down upon the surface of Stewjon, a slight wind making the water trickle in the rivers. Obi-Wan woke early, his stomach feeling tight and uncomfortable. He didn't have an appetite, even when he went down for breakfast; he only managed half a piece of toast. Thankfully he was alone in the kitchen, allowing him the privacy he needed to try to eat.

The first family member he saw was Bro, who entered the kitchen when he had just put away his plate and chucked his remaining toast away. He was wearing flared shorts with a loose fitting sleeveless shirt. His brother-in-law smiled at him.

"Rena told me that Lau-rie and Ben told you the truth about how you were given to the Order," Bro said, watching Obi-Wan carefully.

"They did," he replied.

"How do you feel about it?" Bro asked.

That was blunt. Obi-Wan stilled, unsure of what to say.

"Look, you don't have to answer if you don't want to," continued Bro, but Obi-Wan cut him off.

"No, no that's ok," replied Obi-Wan easily. "I was shocked, surprised even that I wasn't given in the traditional sense to the Order. But I accept my parent's decision in doing so, just as they had a right to take me back originally."

Bro nodded, picking up a bowl and filling it with crunchy rice before pouring milka over it. He sat at the table, facing Obi-Wan. "Look, I just wanna say I admire you Jedi for what you do. You fought a war for us so that people like me didn't have to fight. Regardless of what you may think, the people here respect you."

Obi-Wan shook his head, sounding a bit miserable. "Owen won't be alone in thinking what he does."

Looking at him critically, Bro sighed: "I don't think you are a bad person."

"Hmm, so I'm not a Separatist to you?" he had to ask that; he knew the Republic had announced his forced defection to the Separatists, yet he couldn't believe that most people could be so forgiving. Owen was testament to the fact that others would never trust him again.

"Nope, never were, never will be. We may not know the full truth of what happened to you in this war, but Rena and I are smart enough to look between the lines. You're here because you can't forgive yourself. And you are struggling to accept whether you deserve to be let off from prosecution," said Bro, rather accurately.

Obi-Wan bit his lip. That was completely true. He didn't want to forgive himself. He lowered his head, feeling ashamed at his inadequacy to see beyond his own selfishness. "I don't know what to do."

Bro leaned back in his chair, a little smile pulling at the edges of his lips. "I know what you can do."

Obi-Wan raised his head, one eyebrow crinkling upward. "What?"

"Come with us to the fair."

"Err… what?" Obi-Wan felt confused. The fair? What did that have to do with everything?

"You can't talk to us because you don't trust us because you don't _know _us. Spend more time with your family. Perhaps you will see that not all of us judge you on what the holonet reports," continued Bro, looking a bit smug, but still with a kind expression on his face. "Believe me, I know."

"What do you mean?" asked Obi-Wan, his curiosity rising at that statement.

Bro shrugged. "I used to be a dealer. My parents were poor and we dealt with the illegal trade… I was underage at the time when we were arrested. My father and mother were sent to state prison and I spent two years in confinement. As I was a minor I was given the chance to atone for my ways… The public judged me harshly, not wanting anything to do with me because of my shady past. It was Rena who saved me. It was her that convinced them that I wasn't a bad person, and she taught me to be a better person. I am truly thankful for her to seeing past my mistakes and bad judgements. She helped the public accept me… and then we fell in love. It surprised me that no one – at least publicly – was against our relationship. They trust me now because they looked past what I had done. Owen is capable of that too in your case. He did not like me when I first got together with Rena… then I made the effort to get to know him, and he slowly realised I wasn't the bad person that he thought I was."

Chewing his bottom lip Obi-Wan contemplated what he had learnt. Owen had disliked Bro to but it was on Bro's initiative that helped him to see reason. Could that work for him? The cynical part of his brain said no but the hopeful side screamed yes. He locked eyes with Bro. "Is Owen going to the fair?"

Bro leaned back in his chair and nodded. "He is. He's taking Alex with him."

"Ah." That complicated things.

"If you try to avoid him you two won't ever repair your brotherly relationship," pointed out Bro, almost sounding wise. "And it will give you a chance to get to know the kids."

Obi-Wan hesitated. It was a tempting offer. "This… fair… Will I be expected to do stuff?" He had never been to a fair before, the entire concept was new to him, but he did have an idea of what to expect.

"That is up to you but you won't get to know your family if you sit on the side lines. Rena would love it if you could come," added Bro.

Sighing, Obi-Wan gave in. He had to make some effort; perhaps doing this fair would help him? He nodded at his brother-in-law. "Ok, I'll come."

* * *

Drifting in space, a few thousand light years away, the last remaining Separatist fleet, continued on its course, bearing towards the one planet where a conflict would soon begin. It wouldn't just be a physical battle between the Separatists and the local populace, it would also be the place of a struggle; a struggle between a former Jedi and his inner demons.

And if that Jedi chose wrongly, Stewjon would burn.

**To be continued…**

**Please let me know what you think! **

**Erm so yeah Obi-Wan has seen a few possible futures… and the next chapter he gets to go the fair. Hey, he needs to do some family stuff, right? Don't worry I have a plan for that chapter and Obi-Wan is going to be tested… That's all I'm saying :D**

**I'm back to university next week so I don't know how often I will be able to update or not since I'm entering the part of my year where I'm going to be sitting final exams and assignments. My uni course finishes in March 2014, but I have all the exams mostly in November and most of the assignments are due in then too so if I don't manage to update every week that will be why **

**I hope to update next week! **

**the-writer1988**


	5. Chapter 5: Kidnapped

**A/N) Erm, I know I'm a week late with this but this chapter didn't want to be written. I am now back at university so my time is going to be limited. For that I do apologise if there is going to be longer waits between chapters. I will try to keep up with a regular schedule, however I've got all my final exams coming up and I really need to study and revise for them! Still, I do have some great plans for this story and I hope all you will stick with it!**

* * *

**The Protector**

**Chapter Five: Kidnapped**

Everyone apart from Owen was pleased that Obi-Wan was attending the fair with them however he didn't back out of taking his own son for not wishing to upset his mother and father. It was supposed to be a family trip, one that was shared with the community at large. The fair was a bi-annual event arranged by the Stewjon government, the funds raised from it went to the poorer families on Stewjon. It was a long tradition, one that evolved over the years.

The fair itself covered one square mile on the lands located just outside the main city. Rides of all sorts had been erected: the Circular Wheel which span around getting faster and faster before slowing; Waterfall, a boat ride which ended with large drop into a big tub of water; The Liquidiser – a five dimensional rollercoaster that stretched high into the sky that took the rider into the sky and back down at astonishing speeds; there was also a zero gravity ride that gave the person a feel of being in space without any gravity: this was a popular one with the young children; the Timebox, a ride through your life and how you would age, a frightening experience for young children but an interesting one for the adults and finally the final, most popular entertainment was the chance to walk on other worlds in a simulation of the Core Worlds in which you would go into a booth and be transported anywhere in the galaxy. As well as the five main rides, the fair hosted a number of small games located around the area sitting on stalls in which one could win prizes. There were a few stalls that surprised Obi-Wan as they stated that their money would go to the Jedi Order.

Laui-rie leaned in close to him. "Those stalls were set up when we announced that you were staying with the Order. We have always donated to the Jedi Order. After all, it is public donations that you rely on, right?"

Obi-Wan nodded. "They are." He reached into his pocket and found some coins, the few credits that he had to his name, walked over to one of the stalls and handed over the coins. He wasn't dressed as a Jedi so he was able to make a donation to his own Order. He owed the Order for the life they had given him. It was about time he tried to give something back to them.

He noticed Owen watching him, keeping one hand on his son's shoulder. He rolled his eyes, muttering under his breath. He had a feeling that his brother was saying something derogatory about him or the Order. Let him have his beliefs: there was nothing Obi-Wan could do to change them.

Rena patted him on the shoulder. "Don't worry."

"I'm not," answered Obi-Wan.

He stood by his sister, joining in at least one ride when Orwin grabbed his hand and stubbornly refused to let go. It just happened to be the rollercoaster which he didn't find enjoyable at all. It reminded him too much of Anakin's unpredictable flying. Still he found that he was able to get on well with his sister's children, all of whom were quite happy to welcome him into their lives.

Owen's son, Alex, watched as his cousins played with the uncle that he could not. The boy had heard nothing but bad things about Obi-Wan from his uncle and was reluctant to get to know him, and Owen wouldn't let him anyway. He was being secluded from his own family in favour of the man who had just returned to them.

Obi-Wan felt guilty for causing strife within his own family. What right did he have to them anyway when they had let him go years ago? He just felt that being here was all wrong.

"Is Owen really not going to let Alex join us because of me?" he asked Rena. The poor boy was hardly getting a chance to do anything.

Rena sighed. "Owen is being rather stubborn at the moment. He just needs to get to know you. Alex is suffering because of his misguided views." She looked over at her mooching brother. "You two need to talk. Out here is the better option because Owen wouldn't risk his reputation laying into you in public."

Obi-Wan nodded. "If you believe so."

Rena grabbed his arm and pushed him over to Owen.

Owen rolled his eyes as they approached. "What do you want, Rena?"

"You two need to talk."

"I have nothing to say."

"I have," said Obi-Wan quietly. He did have something to say. He just hoped that his brother would allow him to speak his mind.

Rena reached out to Alex. "Let my nephew spend time with his cousins. If you don't want Alex around Obi-Wan, then let him come with me."

"He didn't have to come in the first place," muttered Owen under his breath.

Rena was about to reply but Obi-Wan held up a hand. "Don't." He fixed eyes with Owen. "I came because I wanted to get to know my family. And don't say you are not, you are my brother, I would rather get to know you personally before I dismiss you as someone not worth knowing."

"I don't want to get to know you," said Owen quietly.

Obi-Wan folded his arms. "Is it because I failed to save your wife despite not even knowing that she was on Christophsis?"

Owen didn't reply.

"Is it because you lost me as a child and you remember me as your brother, a brother who looked out and cared for you?" continued Obi-Wan.

Owen took in a deep breath and then let it out. He squeezed his son's shoulder. "Alex, go and play with your cousins. I need to talk to my brother."

Rena caught Obi-Wan's eye.

He mutually shook his head. No, he did not want her to stay.

Rena held out a hand and took Alex's small one. "Come on, let's go and find the others."

Obi-Wan stood wearily facing his brother, unsure of where this may be going.

"When you didn't come back when mum and dad found you, I was upset," began Owen, slowly. "You were my best friend. I was upset for months. Even as a child I felt that I was missing something. When I was ten I tried to use dad's ship to go to Coruscant. I didn't get very far. That was when I started to realise you didn't want me, that I meant nothing to you. I resented you for what you were and what you had done to my family. When the war started and I heard about your victories I started to feel differently about you… that maybe you did care."

Obi-Wan swallowed. Where was this coming from? He had expected is brother to be very sullen, not wanting to talk at all.

"And then my wife died and my old prejudices roared back… especially when I learned that you were there, trying to save that planet."

"A Jedi cares about everyone. We try to help as best we can… in war time, it's to win the war and to save as many lives as possible. The Separatists wanted Christophsis. They weren't going to allow us to take the planet back that easily. We tried to save as many people as we could. I'm sorry that your wife wasn't one of them." It was the least Obi-Wan could say.

"It doesn't take away the pain. If I hadn't urged her to go, she'd be here now. Alex would have his mother and I'd be more welcoming to you," said Owen. "It's worse when I know what you have done, what you did."

This had to be brought up. Obi-Wan's defection to the Separatists. How was he supposed to respond to that? "I was captured when my ship was attacked whilst we were on patrol. Count Dooku had coveted me for months. He wanted me to join him, I kept on refusing. He used a drug on me, a drug that made my mind susceptible to his manipulations. I joined him because of that and for no other reason."

"I find that hard to believe," replied Owen, almost darkly.

"I am only telling you the truth. Don't you think I regret betraying the Republic? Why do you think I'm here? I blame myself for what I could have stopped happening. I killed Dooku, despite the fact he committed suicide on my blade! I could have stopped that from happening but did I consciously attempt to? No, I didn't!" Obi-Wan sighed. How could he make Owen understand? "If I really wasn't safe, do you really think the Jedi Council would let me go?"

Owen bowed his head. He could not answer.

"Look, I understand that you may feel uneasy around me. But I want to get to know you. But that will only work if both of us are willing to try."

He could sense there was a war going on in Owen's mind. They continued to walk in silence, an uneasy silence falling between the two brothers. Owen wasn't talking, clearly wrapped up in his own thoughts.

"What was your wife like?" asked Obi-Wan.

Owen sighed. "The love of my life. Wonderful. Talented. Beautiful. You wouldn't understand…" he replied softly.

Obi-Wan frowned. "I have loved, Owen, I just haven't acted upon it."

"Kellie and I were childhood sweethearts," continued Owen quietly. "I can hardly believe she is gone."

Obi-Wan bit his lip. This wasn't the time to mention what he needed to say. "I would have saved her if I could have done. The Jedi didn't want people to needlessly die and we tried our best to save as many people as we could."

"Could have tried harder," muttered Owen, but there was a difference in his voice. He didn't seem to be sounding bitter at Obi-Wan's lack of ability to save his wife.

"The ones we love never truly leave us," said Obi-Wan. "Your wife is still with you. She's in your heart."

Owen blinked, a solitary tear slid down his cheek and he hastily wiped it away. "She was pregnant when she died. Only a few months, no one else in the family knew."

And that was the crux of it. Owen hadn't just lost his wife on that day, he had lost a child. A child that he would never meet due to his fatal decision to send his wife to a planet that was under threat of invasion. No wonder he felt so guilty about it and sought to lay blame onto someone else's shoulders.

Tempted to pat Owen's shoulder, Obi-Wan resisted, instead choosing to say: "I'm sorry."

Owen was about to open his mouth to respond when a scream rent through the air.

Both brothers whirled and saw families running towards them as ten speeders flew into the fair, weaving in and out of the crowd, pushing down civilians and dragging some along the ground, causing scratches and bruises of all kinds.

Obi-Wan rushed forward to help up a small girl who was trembling from head to foot as her mother rushed towards her. He handed the child back to her mother, received thanks and followed Owen as he ran back towards the centre of the fair where they had left his family.

And that was when it hit him.

Obi-Wan's danger sense flared, felt a warning tugging at the back of his brain. _DANGER!_ His mind screamed at him to act. He listened to his instincts and fell to the floor, just as a speeder bike zoomed over his position, missing him by inches. Obi-Wan scrambled to his knees and looked up.

He reached down to his waist for his lightsaber… only to remember he didn't have it with him. He only had the crystal, not the hilt, which he had left back on Coruscant under the care of Anakin.

The men on the speeder bikes wore masks, making them completely unidentifiable. Each one held a blaster, firing it into the air, but ensuring that they did not hit any of the people they were terrorising. They were after something… something that they didn't want to harm…

A dreaded feeling filled Obi-Wan's stomach. He ran through the crowd, helping those when he could, his eyes searching for Owen. And then he saw him, grabbing Alex from Rena and trying to move through the crowd.

"There he is!" a voice yelled over the crowd.

Three of the speeder bikes converged on Owen's position.

Obi-Wan swallowed. These men were after Alex. It only made sense. They had to be.

Without a weapon, without anything to help him, Obi-Wan steeled himself, leaping up into the air, using the Force to cushion his landing and running at full pelt to reach Owen and Alex's position. Without even thinking, he used the Force to send one of the speeder bikes flying away, the bike tumbling over and the attacker falling from it, sprawled on the floor as his bike crushed him, not enough to kill, but enough to ensure he could not escape without help.

A shot came from one of the other riders, a stun shot that Owen could not block. He fell to the ground. It wasn't enough to send him unconscious but it was enough for him to lose his grip on his son. The men on speeder bikes took the advantage, sped forward, grabbed Alex and tore away.

"DADDY!"

Obi-Wan rushed past his nearly unconscious brother and Force-leapt again, landing on the back of one of the speeder bikes, grabbing the shoulders of the attacker and forcing him off the bike. The man fell to the earth, and Obi-Wan grabbed the handles, taking control and steering the bike in the direction of Alex's kidnapper.

Still he did not have a weapon, something he hadn't thought through. Maybe leaving his lightsaber behind had been a bad mistake.

Shots blasted over his shoulder and he looked back. Three of the speeder bikes were following him. Obi-Wan cursed under his breath, pulling the control sticks to the side to avoid the shots, but the masked men had already accounted for that and he flew right into the fire barrage of a fourth rider he hadn't noticed to the right, behind him.

His speeder engines exploded and he lost control of the steering, trying to bring his vehicle back under control, but he couldn't and he leapt from the speeder, rolling onto his back, as the speeder exploded in a ball of flame. He raised his head as the speeder bikes sped off into the distance, taking Alex with them.

_Damn._

Just when he could have been repairing things with Owen, this had to happen.

Climbing to his feet, he slowly made his way back to the fair where he found Owen, shaking and completely white. A small crowd surrounded him and Rena had her arms around him.

Obi-Wan gently shook his head as Owen tried to ask if he had found Alex. "No, they got away."

Owen's eyes blazed, and Obi-Wan realised what was coming.

"Just when I thought I was wrong about you… you did it again and failed to save my son!" Owen screamed.

Obi-Wan wasn't shocked. His shoulders sagged.

"Owen!" Rena exclaimed.

Owen pulled away from her. "No!" He stumbled back. Fear and worry was etched across his face as he pointed at Obi-Wan. "I don't need your help! You can do nothing for this family! Why don't you go back to the Jedi? Maybe you can be just as useless with them as you are here!" And he ran.

Rena looked ready to follow, but Obi-Wan said quietly: "Don't follow him."

"But-"

"I don't want to make matters worse. I tried to get to Alex but I couldn't. But I promise you, Rena that I will get him back."

And he meant that. He wasn't going to fail again.

**To be continued…**

**Please let me know what you think!**

**Oh dear… poor Owen. **

**There is more to Alex's kidnapping… it is all starting to build up to the central plot that I am hoping to weave through this story. **

**I hope to have chapter 6 posted soon!**

**the-writer1988 **


	6. Chapter 6: Accusations

**A/N) Thank you for the reviews! Here is the next chapter…**

* * *

**The Protector **

**Chapter Six: Accusations**

The news of Alex's kidnapping quickly spread: police were sent out to search for him and everyone who had been present at the fair were questioned. Owen hadn't been seen since he had run away after his son's disappearance. They had heard nothing from the kidnappers and that worried Obi-Wan as he had the ominous feeling that there was more to Alex's kidnapping. He couldn't shake the memories of the visions he had seen in his last meditation. His fourth vision: the one with Stewjon covered in darkness appeared to be beginning to happen… Alex had died in that vision.

Obi-Wan paced the area where the fair had been held. Every stall and ride had been abandoned, rubbish littered the floor and areas were cordoned off by police. It was only Ben Kenobi's influence that had allowed Obi-Wan to enter the crime scene and investigate himself.

Despite Owen yelling at Obi-Wan in front of a small crowd, his presence on Stewjon hadn't been mentioned. The fact that he was a Jedi should have got out by now. It would be very easy for him to be identified as a member of the Kenobi family, how no one had realised that he was the original heir astounded him.

Of course Stewjon had a policy on privacy, and it wouldn't have surprised Obi-Wan if it simply wasn't being publicised that he was back. Technically he wasn't really a Jedi: he was on leave, and he had nearly turned. He wasn't what one would class as a keeper of the peace, especially since he had committed crimes that he shouldn't have been let off on.

_You need to stop thinking like that, Obi-Wan. If you continue to do so you will endanger your family more. _

Qui-Gon.

"How can blaming myself really effect my family?"

_Simple. You will lose focus and believe you are incapable of doing anything right. Alex's kidnapping is part of a much larger plot. You have to unravel it and take your place as a Jedi on this world. _

"I'm not a Jedi," he answered back.

_You may not feel you are, but I know you will be. _

"I couldn't even save my own nephew!" Obi-Wan snapped back.

_Because you were not meant to. _

"What?"

_The Force works in mysterious ways. _

Obi-Wan rolled his eyes. "I find it hard to believe that Alex was meant to be kidnapped."

_Just like how Anakin was born into slavery? Why didn't the Force choose for him to be born to a family where the Jedi could have identified him early? He wasn't meant to be a normal Jedi, that is why. _

"Anakin's case is completely different."

_Is it? _

Obi-Wan sighed. "He's just a child."

_With a bright future in front of him._

"Unless his kidnapper's decide to kill him."

_They won't unless you misstep. You have a chance here. Look, and feel all around you. You will find what you are looking for. _

"And Owen?"

_He has suffered a loss that cannot be undone. He will never forgive himself. In time he will learn and accept that. And he will accept you. Believe in him. Believe in yourself. And you will become what you were born to be once again. _

With a heavy heart, and feeling guilty, Obi-Wan stretched out with the Force, searching for the signature that resounded through the Force of Alex Kenobi. The young boy's aura was very faint, and it was fading with every passing second: the trace becoming less and less with. But the boy was still alive and it didn't feel that he was in any particular danger of imminent death. Rather, whoever his kidnappers were, they were trying to get him as far away as they possibly could.

If he had a speeder bike he might have been able to follow the trail but without it, he couldn't. He could try walking off but the fair was surrounding by security forces, searching for their own clues. He didn't have much time left before his allocated time to search the site was over: did he really have enough time to begin tracking Alex?

But he knew the general direction his young nephew had been taken in. Even without following the trail now it might still be possible to find him later, especially if his kidnappers contacted the family.

A sinking realisation hit him. He couldn't do anything more just yet: he had to wait and be patient, and hope that Alex didn't lose his life in the meantime.

* * *

Returning to the home he would have grown up in, he found Rena waiting for him on the doorstep, a sad expression stretched across her face. He knew before she had even spoken what she was going to say.

"It's Owen, isn't it?"

She nodded sadly. "It's been one day. He's given up hope. But he blames you."

"Me?"

"Owen argued with dad and I about you; that this all started when you came home… He said we were denying the truth. We all know the stories that you joined the Separatists… and we all know that the Senate and the Separatists cleared you of any wrong-doing… We believe that but Owen doesn't," she shivered in the cool night air. "He thinks you are behind Alex's kidnapping."

Obi-Wan's eyebrows rose at that ridiculous statement. "Why?"

"Because you are out there trying to find Alex. He thinks you are hiding any evidence the kidnappers left," she replied.

"But… but that's…"

"Insane, I know," sighed Rena. "I know you are responsible for at least one of the kidnappers being detained. We don't know whether the questioning is going well on that or not…" She chewed her bottom lip. "I hate to think what they might do to Alex."

"I think they took Alex for a reason and it wasn't for ransom against this family."

Rena looked at him quizzically. "Is this your Force ability telling you something?"

Obi-Wan shrugged. "Sort of." Could he tell her? Could he trust her that he had, had a vision? A vision that had shown Alex's death?

_If you don't start trusting people you can never heal… _

Qui-Gon's voice echoed into his mind.

"What is it?" Rena urged.

He bit the bullet. "How much do you know about a Jedi's abilities?"

"A small bit, why?" asked Rena cautiously, moving a bit closer to him in the fading light.

"Sometimes Jedi have intuitions about the future, possible visions to see what could happen."

Rena nodded anxiously. "And?"

"I had a vision, two days ago," he swallowed. Was he really doing the right thing? He had started now, he couldn't stop. "It was about Alex. He was dead."

A hand flew to Rena's mouth in abject horror.

"Owen was holding his body… And I saw our world fall," he shivered as the mental image of Owen hugging his son's bloody and lifeless body forced its way into his mind. He locked gazes with his younger sister. "Stewjon could fall and Alex's kidnapping is just the start of it."

"He's going to die?" whispered Rena.

"I don't know if what I saw is the definite picture," he responded. "It could have been a warning." A warning meant for him, to show what could happen if he didn't get his act together. The trouble was, was that he still felt inadequate, still felt that he shouldn't even be trying to help. He had to ignore the part of him that was screaming at him to run away, simply because he hadn't been able to prevent Alex's kidnapping.

"But if they took him for another reason other than ransom, why would they need him alive?" questioned Rena. Surely it would be better to kill him?

"Because he could become a means of controlling Owen and the rest of the family," answered Obi-Wan. He had considered this theory on the way back home and it seemed to fit with his vision, especially if the Separatists were behind the kidnapping in anyway. "You fail to do what they want, and he dies."

"Is this world under threat by external forces?"

Obi-Wan reluctantly nodded. "I think the rogue element of the remaining Separatist army is coming here."

Rena's lip trembled. "And you saw that?"

"It's a possibility," he answered truthfully, because he really did not know whether any of his visions would come true. "I'm trying to find him but it is difficult. I don't think Alex is in any immediate danger, despite my vision. I cannot even say if what I saw was the future. The Force is always in motion, always changing… Our paths are never truly laid out… It is our actions that define us, that make our decisions for us."

Rena smiled gently. "I thought you might say something philosophical like that."

Obi-Wan shrugged. "Owen would probably say something derogatory about me if he heard me saying that."

"He probably would," agreed Rena, signing audibly. "What are you going to do?"

"I found some traces of the kidnappers and I can sense Alex through the Force. I intend to follow that feeling. And I hope to find him. But I'd like Owen to help." Even saying it he knew Rena doubted that Owen would want to help, especially if he had got it into his head that his own brother was involved in the attack.

"Good luck with that. You're going to need it," encouraged Rena.

Obi-Wan's lips curled up at the sides. "Thanks." He moved past her and headed into the house, pausing in the doorframe to look over his shoulder at his sister. "Never know, I could be lucky."

Rena shook her head, trying not to laugh.

It felt wrong to laugh while a member of the family was missing.

* * *

Lau-rie found her youngest son in his room, lying flat out on his back on the bed. She could understand why he was acting like this. He had lost two people he had deeply loved, but the difference was that his son was still alive whereas his wife had died. She couldn't understand why he wasn't doing anything to help the authorities with their investigations.

"Owen?" she called softly, her voice lower than normal.

Owen turned to face his mother, his eyes dull and he appeared to have lost his zest for life. It reminded her of how he had been when his wife had died. "None of you can see it, can you?"

Lau-rie wrinkled her nose in confused, a particular habit of hers. "I don't know what you mean."

"Of course you do. You just don't want to admit it," sighed Owen. "Everything started to go wrong as soon as _he _came home."

"Obi-Wan is –"

"Trying to help us! He's been out there trying to find Alex!" retorted Lau-rie before her son could say a word against the child she had ultimately given up to the Jedi Order.

Owen snorted. "He's just trying to hide his involvement!"

"He is a Jedi, he would never turn against us or the Republic!" shouted Lau-rie, her anger rising and her cheeks flushing red at the wild accusations that Owen was implying about her oldest child.

"Hah! You've stayed away from any news on the war, fearful that you would hear the worst! You don't know what he's done or what he is! He's keeping something from us and all of us know what it is! You are harbouring a Separatist sympathiser underneath your roof! He can do nothing wrong according to you, but your precious first-born son betrayed the Republic! It's all out there on the news. So, don't tell me that _Obi-Wan _would never turn against the Republic. He did!" Owen was nearly screaming, his temper rising. Though a grown man, he was still very capable of arguing with his parents: one of the things that occurred when the family still shared the same house-space, but mostly living apart.

Lau-rie stepped back, shaking her head. "No…"

Owen fixed his eyes with his mother. "Go and ask him. See what he says. And then tell me he would never betray the Republic."

Owen seemed so sure of his convictions and the truth of what Obi-Wan really was that Lau-rie turned and ran from the room, wiping away the tears that were threatening to descend down her cheeks, as she ran down the hallway. She felt that her family was being torn apart bit by bit… Her son wouldn't accept his returned brother… She just couldn't comprehend that the child she had given to the Jedi, to serve the Republic, could ever betray the government and the Order that had raised him.

"Mother?"

She looked up, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand.

Obi-Wan stood there at the top of the stairs, unsure of what to do, but gently he reached out and pulled her into a hug, resting his chin on the top of her head.

Comforted by his embrace, Lau-rie burst into tears, her shoulders heaving as she pulled her oldest child closer.

It was a few minutes before she could compose herself and she looked up at her son, staring into his eyes, seeking consolation for the hurt she was feeling. "Is it true?"

"What's true?" he asked, though she could tell that he knew what had just transpired between Owen and herself.

"That you betrayed the Republic?" her voice was cracking. Lau-rie didn't want to believe what was the truth. She hoped he would deny it.

Obi-Wan was silent for a long while until he finally spoke up. "I'm sorry." How could he possibly ignore it? He had known he would have to speak to his family about his defection but he had hoped it would have been later on…

"What?" Lau-rie leaned away from her son, her eyes wide in shock. "What did you say?"

Obi-Wan's mouth twitched. "Owen is right. I did betray the Republic."

Lau-rie shook her head. "No… no…" she stammered. She stepped away from him, her heart beating fast inside her chest. "Why?"

Obi-Wan gaze lowered and he let out a long sigh. "It's complicated," he finally answered.

"I need to know…" Lau-rie whispered. She grabbed his arm, tugging on the fabric. "You have to tell me!"

Obi-Wan shook his head. "I can't…"

"You have to tell her."

Another voice entered the conversation, this time from the stair-case that wound up to the landing. Just below them on the third to last step was Rena.

"But…"

"You know it is the right thing to do," added Rena. "And we'll be right there with you."

It was at those words that Lau-rie understood. "I'm not going to disown you… You're not a Separatist now are you?"

Obi-Wan shook his head, not able to meet her eyes, as if he felt ashamed of what he had done. "No."

Lau-rie swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat. "Good." Slowly, she walked forward and took her son's hands. "You need to tell me. Not just for my own peace of mind, but for yours as well."

"I know." Obi-Wan's voice was quiet.

So she asked one more time: "Will you tell me?"

**To be continued…**

**Please let me know what you think! **

**So Obi-Wan is beginning to trust his sister at least… and Owen is devastated over the loss of his son and is making some rather radical conclusions about Obi-Wan. He may be acting strangely but remember he did lose his wife so he can't see any hope and Owen does have a role to play in this story, things can change. Believe me when I say this that this chapter was difficult to write. It's all starting to build up to the plot I'm in the process of unravelling. The chapters are going to get longer. Lots of action coming up. **

**Next chapter: **Obi-Wan decides whether he should take the first step or not.

**I hope to post again next week. **

**Until then,**

**the-writer1988**


	7. Chapter 7: The Truth of the Past

**A/N) Thank you to everyone who reviewed the last chapter! This chapter was difficult to write as its really just Obi-Wan talking but I think this chapter is needed to move the story forward.**

* * *

**The Protector**

**Chapter 7: The Truth Of My Past**

Obi-Wan stood there on the landing looking at his mother, her eyes full of worry and hope at the same time, as if she didn't know how to feel. He didn't want to make her feel worse than she already did by telling her what had happened to him. It still hurt him when he thought about what Dooku had done to him, how the Count had ruined his life by manipulating him in such a way that he had turned upon the Order that had raised him.

Would talking about it really help him?

He didn't really know because he hadn't really spoken to anyone about what happened to him after Dooku's death. Yes, Anakin knew and the Council knew, but surely that should be enough for him to let go and heal? He thought of Padmé: his actions meant that she could never have children. Potential Skywalkers would no longer exist due to his lightsaber blade. Guilt welled up in him.

They had forgiven him but he hadn't forgiven himself.

How could they?

He sighed.

His mind was rushing through scenarios.

But didn't they deserve to know the truth? He was always open and honest, especially when he was negotiating: how every side should have all the facts as only a respectable decision could come from that.

"I don't want to hurt you or feel guilty. I feel guilty enough as it is for being here," said Obi-Wan slowly.

"How can I feel guilty when you are an adult and free to make your own choices?" she responded. "I gave you to the Jedi on the understanding that they would look after you until you were an adult. You are one. What happens to you as a Jedi Knight, as an adult, is something I cannot be guilty about. You may be my son but I relinquished any guilt I could have had when I signed you away to the Jedi." There was a sad look in her eyes. "I chose not to learn about the war because I didn't want to know that you had died… But you would have died fighting for what you believe in, what you would have been taught to do. It was your death that scared me most."

Obi-Wan couldn't believe it. His mother was an astonishing woman.

"All I want to know is the truth. You are here now. Owen could make me feel guilty if he keeps talking about you as if you were a disease upon this family… But not you," she said quietly. "Please, just tell me the truth. Tell me of the Jedi Order, tell me of yourself… I want to know." She moved forward and held onto his arms. "And I think it will help you too."

Mutely, Obi-Wan nodded. "It won't be easy…"

"It will help both of us."

Silence fell between the two of them, and Rena stepped forward. "Obi-Wan, whatever Owen thinks you are, I know you are not. I didn't distance myself away from the news and I haven't shunned you. Mum won't either."

"Ok." His answer was low in tone but Rena caught it. But then he asked: "Can you stay?" He wanted support.

"I can," replied Rena solemnly. "If you want me to."

He could trust her, he knew it: the Force was telling him to. He nodded.

Obi-Wan had made up his mind: he didn't like the thought of it but he had to take that first step.

So he did.

* * *

Rena led them into kitchen, closing the door behind Obi-Wan. His mother sat down at the table while Rena boiled the kettle and poured them out some tea: she thought they might need that considering what they were going to talk about; Obi-Wan rightly agreed with her.

Once they were all settled, Obi-Wan facing his mother, and Rena to the side of them both, Obi-Wan took in a deep breath and asked: "What do you want to know?" His voice was soft.

"Everything," replied Rena. "Start from the beginning."

His mother nodded. "From your earliest memory. Everything you have done, I want to know about. Help me understand the Jedi Order. What was it like training as a child? What was it like realising that you were different from normal children your age? Who were your mentors? Who was responsible for making you a Jedi? Have you trained anyone?"

That was a lot of questions. His mother didn't just want the details of the Clone Wars, she wanted to know everything. Obi-Wan swallowed. This was going to take a while, but perhaps it would help if she understood more before he went onto discuss the real issue as to why he had returned to Stewjon? He could feel the Force agreeing to that and felt relieved that he appeared to be going in the right direction.

"My earliest memory? It's a mixture of things," he answered. "Just lessons in the Force, how I should control my power, learning to use a training lightsaber… There isn't really a one defined memory of my Temple life. I do have vague recollections of Owen before I left but they are very hazy, quite undefined but I always knew I had a brother."

"Training from a young child helps a Jedi keep their focus. We are trained to not have attachments, to not to fall in love, but we are to be compassionate. It's difficult to not form attachments. No matter what the Jedi say, all of us have attachments but it is not recognised as such. When death comes we have to let go and celebrate it because the Force is just a pathway to somewhere else. Until I was thirteen I was trained by Master Yoda, the Grand Master of the Jedi Order. He was responsible for training younglings in the early aspects of the Force."

"I remember Master Yoda," commented his mother. "He was very kind. It was he who told us about the future you had with the Order, and it was his words that swayed us to allow you to stay." She sipped a bit from her drink.

"Master Yoda does that," answered Obi-Wan. "He has been a great help to me over the years…" He shook his head, a slight smile pulling at his lips. It felt good to reminiscence. "When a youngling turns twelve years of age, Jedi Knights can choose them as their apprentices. If you are not chosen by a Knight by the time you are thirteen, a youngling is sent to the Agri-Corps to assist the Jedi Order in other ways. It was considered among the younglings to be something to avoid but it was a part of the Order that was necessary. I was sent to the Agri-Corps but it was temporary as I soon ended up helping the Jedi Knight who rejected me originally. He saw my potential and agreed to train me. He was Qui-Gon Jinn." A sad smile pulled at his lips. "He trained me as best he could… but he was killed."

"How?" probed Rena, looking at him sadly.

Obi-Wan sighed. "It happened when I was twenty-five. I was still an apprentice. Qui-Gon and I were given a mission to assist in trade negotiations on Naboo as the Trade Federation was blockading the planet."

"Oh," his mother's eyes widened. "I heard about that! They invaded the planet didn't they? Tried to get a treaty signed by the Queen? A Jedi was killed… You were involved in that?"

"I was," answered Obi-Wan. It didn't surprise him that his mother knew of some details. The Naboo incident had been made very public due to Queen Amidala's arrival on Coruscant and her impassioned speech which had led to Palpatine becoming Chancellor, though on reflection now, she had just been a pawn in his game to win control of the Republic. "The Jedi have enemies… other Force sensitive's but who use their power for bad rather than good. They are known as the Sith and they were supposedly extinct a millennia ago but they lived on. The last two remaining Sith were involved in Naboo's conflict… and the apprentice was tasked to kill myself and my Master. We fought whilst the Queen tried to free her planet from the Trade Federation. The Sith apprentice was difficult to beat. He managed to separate my Master and I. Qui-Gon was growing weak as the battle was prolonged… He was stabbed through the stomach and died of his wounds." It made him feel sad thinking about that event in his life. "I was nearly killed. I drew on my anger and nearly suffered for my lack of focus, but I won in the end, killing the Sith. My Master died in my arms. Qui-Gon was the first person I lost who I cared about."

"The Jedi involved were never formally identified," said Rena. "I remember the Naboo invasion, I remember thinking about you. You lost the one person there that had been responsible for your training all this time."

Obi-Wan nodded. "I did. But because of my actions in killing the Sith apprentice I was promoted to Jedi Knight and I took on an apprentice of my own, a young boy, named Anakin Skywalker. Qui-Gon had discovered him just prior to his death and he asked me to train him as a Jedi as Anakin was too old to enter training formally. He was nine. It was only my insistence and Anakin's own actions during the Naboo invasion that secured him a place within the Jedi Order." It seemed strange to note that the Jedi and the Sith had discovered the Chosen One at the same time. Why the Sith had allowed the Order to induct Anakin into their ranks still flummoxed him, but Sidious had still had his influence in Anakin as the young boy had constantly visited him. Sidious had been in the ideal position to corrupt him and he would have done if Dooku hadn't tried to turn Obi-Wan.

Dooku's mistakes appeared to have been the saving grace of Anakin Skywalker who could have fallen if circumstances had been different.

He continued to speak about training Anakin and how their relationship had developed from mere strangers to brothers over the course of ten years, up to the start of the Clone Wars when Anakin had been sent on his first assignment on his own without his Master. He spoke about how the war had started; how he had tracked Jango Fett to Geonosis and discovered his link to the Separatists and to Dooku. He explained how he had alerted the Republic to the army that was being built and how in the process he had been captured and held prisoner by Count Dooku.

His mother cleared her throat as she tried to speak. "That was the last news broadcast I allowed myself to watch. I knew you had been sentenced for execution but the Jedi Order rescued you in time, but not without casualties. A lot of Jedi died that day… With the war started, I just couldn't watch anymore. I didn't want to know about it." Lau-rie's voice trembled.

Obi-Wan nodded, understanding her worry and why she had declined to even hear anything about the way, especially his involvement in it. The fact that she had succeeded in doing so was remarkable.

"The only thing I did know about was Kellie's death," his mother continued. "How could I ignore that? That was the only time I heard your name in connection with that campaign. I know you were on Christophsis and tried to fight back and protect the people from the Separatists. That was the only time in the entire war that I let myself learn about it. It was for Owen's sake because with Kellie's death, I had to understand if I was to help him. I know he blames you for that." She clenched her fingers together, trying to relieve the stress that was building up. "But after that, I resorted back to complete silence on the war. My family was supportive enough that they did not tell me. They respected my decision not to know. The war didn't make many headlines here on our world, so it was easy to avoid and since it didn't affect us – only our trade operations – it wasn't something that our people were fussed about hearing of in daily newscasts."

Obi-Wan could understand that. Stewjon was far from Coruscant, sitting on the edge of Republic space, far enough way that the planet would barely be affected by the Clone Wars, but if his vision was true, it wouldn't remain quiet for long. The uncanny feeling was back again as he thought that. Stewjon was going to erupt in war, he just knew it. He shivered slightly as that thought passed over him.

Rena reached across the table and gripped his hand, squeezing it gently. "Something happened to you during the war though, something that made you turn your back on the Republic."

A hard lump formed in his throat and Obi-Wan nodded wearily. "Yes."

His mother's voice was barely a whisper but he heard her question. "What happened?"

He swallowed, trying to ignore the trepidation he felt fluttering in his stomach as his mind screamed at him to turn and run away but he knew deep in his heart he had to do this: not just for his own sake, but for his mother's to.

Obi-Wan couldn't bear to meet her eyes as he began to speak. "It was routine patrolling mission: protect our borders and to sign in at specific check-in-times. General Grievous attacked my fleet, boarded my ship and we fought. He captured me and after destroying the rest of my fleet took me to Serenno where I was handed over to Count Dooku," he sighed as images flashed through his head as he remembered his captivity there: of how the Count had sought to turn him by twisting his mind. "Count Dooku always had an interest in me: he admitted as much on Geonosis but I refused to join him and he handed me over to the justice of the Geonosians. This time however I was completely at his mercy. He knew that no one would risk attacking Serenno and he had laid the perfect trap, ensuring that Anakin – who was searching for me – would be led astray whilst Dooku twisted my mind. Dooku… drugged me," he choked out, finding it difficult to admit that. "He used a drug that affected my mind. I couldn't fight through the fog because he used a Force suppressor on me which prevented me from even reaching for it…"

"What drug did he use?" enquired Rena.

"_Fever_."

Rena wrinkled her nose in distaste. "I feel like I should know that drug."

"It has another name," replied Obi-Wan quietly. "_Tetramecinia_. It's a drug designed to cause hallucinations and make you believe what you hear even if you are told unreasonable things."

"And what did you believe?" whispered Rena, understanding that her older brother had succumbed to that drug.

"I believed that I had been betrayed," Obi-Wan hung his head, guilt filling him as he considered the mess he had made by allowing the drug to influence and control him. "Qui-Gon and Anakin both betrayed me… The Jedi Council had as well… I learned the truth about the former Chancellor, about who he really was and I joined Dooku, influenced by the drugs, because of it. I didn't join of my own violation. Dooku kept me on the drug even when he said that he wasn't and I easily believed it."

"It's not your fault," replied his mother, a kind tone to her voice. She squeezed his hand again.

Obi-Wan swallowed. "People have said that to me a lot. I trusted him to not drug me… It's still my fault. I'm not blameless in this."

"Yes you are," intoned Rena. "How can you be blamed for something when you were deliberately being influenced by another person? You weren't yourself, and you were not making those decisions willingly though you thought you were."

Obi-Wan shook his head. "That may be so but it is hard to accept that I am free of punishment when I should be in prison. Dooku and I had a plan: I hated the Chancellor for what he was and attacked him on Naboo. Anakin was there and stood up for him. I had tried to hint to Anakin who he really was, but he still defended him. I didn't realise at the time but Anakin did know that the former Chancellor was the Sith Lord. He had worked it out from my hints when he had tried to rescue me and I refused to go with him, having already made an agreement with Dooku." He shuddered as he remembered that memory. "I let my anger and hatred of Palpatine get the better of me. I was blind to what Anakin was trying to communicate to me over our bond. My anger at his supposed stupidity made me break the bond we shared…" A tear leaked down his cheek: that still got to him.

"You obviously came back though," probed his mother.

"I did. Anakin sent me a message and that was when I realised Dooku had still been feeding me the drug. Dooku immobilised me, broke into my mind and hid memories from me, manipulating my mind into believing things that had happened to me that hadn't." He lifted his right hand and stroked down the right side of his face, the scar left made by Dooku stood out in the light. "This scar Dooku made me believe Anakin had given to me. I tried to kill Anakin, I took his apprentice hostage… But they managed to capture me, took me back to the Jedi Temple."

"And that was when you remembered," guessed Rena.

"It was," he confirmed. "I knew Dooku had been manipulating me. I knew that Sidious had to die and I knew Anakin had never betrayed me… Nor had my old Master done so either. Everything that had been used to manipulate me had all been lies. Yes, Anakin had made mistakes but I can't blame him for that, not after what I done and tried to do." He didn't elaborate on what Anakin had done; it wasn't his place to do so. Obi-Wan took a sip from his cup and shifted in his seat, feeling a little uncomfortable. "We confronted the Chancellor with Dooku. Anakin killed the Sith Lord… and I… fought Dooku. He tried to make my turn to the dark side final and he nearly succeeded but Anakin stopped me. He brought light back into my mind where there hadn't been any. But Dooku knew that my guilt was the crux of everything. He attacked, I aimed to maim and injure, but he changed direction at the last minute. He…" Obi-Wan choked, the event flashing before his eyes. "Dooku killed himself on my blade and I didn't stop myself from letting that happen."

His mother patted him on the back. "I don't think you could have done." Her face did not hide the shock.

"I could have! A Jedi has very fast reflexes!" responded Obi-Wan. He'd had this argument before but he just could not accept it.

"Fast enough that if someone was close enough to you that you could stop them killing themselves?" queried Rena.

"Yes."

Rena shook her head. "Has everybody else you've spoken to about this said what we have done?" She indicated her mother.

Obi-Wan swallowed. "Yes."

"Then why can you not believe that you couldn't have stopped it?" asked his mother.

He fell silent, not wanting to answer.

"It's because you believe you should feel guilty," answered his mother.

Obi-Wan sighed. He knew she was right. "I wish I didn't feel like this. I wish that I had never become a pawn in Dooku's game." He ran his hands through his hair and bowed his head. "That's… that is what has happened to me. The Republic is in the middle of making peace with the Separatists and I was acquitted of any crimes. I couldn't stay on Coruscant. I had to leave, just to get away from everything, to sort stuff out in my head."

His mother squeezed his hand. "You will. We are here to help you, regardless of what Owen thinks. I know you will prove to him you are not a bad person, no matter how deluded he may be. He may believe I am wrong to still love you, but I know he is wrong. In time he will see it."

Obi-Wan grunted. He rubbed his forehead; he had a headache coming on. He felt stressed, uncomfortable still sitting here with his mother and sister after revealing his past to them. He felt overwhelmed by the support that they still offered him. They didn't want to shun him and they said the same things regarding Dooku's death that other people had said.

Surely that should have been a clue to him that his own thoughts on that specific matter were wrong?

He shook his head. He wouldn't brood on that now. He just couldn't.

"Are you ok?" his mother asked gently.

"Tired, worried," he replied mildly. "I think I need to take a walk. Is that okay? I know it's late… but I need to clear my head a bit. Going to my room isn't going to help…"

His mother nodded. "Go ahead. If it helps you, then you can do so. You don't need our permission to walk around outside."

Nodding his thanks, Obi-Wan pushed his chair back and left the kitchen, leaving his mother and sister alone.

* * *

Lau-rie had known that giving Obi-Wan to the Jedi would mean he might suffer in his life but the extent to which he had gone through still tore at her heart, but she had already made the decision to not feel guilty: Obi-Wan was an adult and she had no responsibility on his upbringing. She could regret giving him to the Order but how could she when he had accomplished so much with them?

Despite what he had suffered, he had survived, he had pulled through.

"Mum, are you okay?" asked Rena gently.

Lau-rie nodded. "Of course. I always knew being a Jedi would give Obi-Wan a hard life. But I know he is a strong person. He's like Ben. I know that he is capable of forgiving himself. I don't want to push him but he needs us to encourage him to believe in himself, that he is still who he was before all this happened."

Rena hesitated on what she was about to say. "I think… I think Alex's kidnapping will be the making of him."

"What makes you say that?" queried Lau-rie, looking at her daughter with large eyes. "What do you know?"

Rena shrugged. "I don't know, it's just a feeling. Don't you think it's strange that Obi-Wan comes back here and Alex is kidnapped? Maybe it was this Force of his that brought him here because it somehow knew that we would need him, but that being here would also help _him_?"

"So you think he was meant to come here?"

"I do," replied Rena passionately. "But I don't think he realises that yet."

Lau-rie sighed. "I hope you are right. But I don't want Alex to become a casualty of this inner war this family is having."

Rena squeezed her mother's left hand. "I don't think he will because I believe in my brother – and Owen too – to help one another when they most need it."

A soft smile brushed across Lau-rie's face. "I hope so. I don't want to lose any of my children or my grandchildren."

"Mum, you won't. I believe that all of us will come through this time. Alex won't die. I'm stating this because I believe that the Force brought Obi-Wan here for a reason. I think he's here to save Alex, but most of all, to save himself. Being here, with us, with the family he never knew, is a way of healing," continued Rena, feeling confident in herself. "I know we will remain intact."

And Lau-rie felt a rush of gratitude towards her daughter consume her body. Her fierce determination only encouraged her own feelings on that matter, and she too began to feel that her daughter was right.

Alex would survive and he would live to see his family again: but in doing so, Alex's rescue would serve to heal the wounded spirit that was Obi-Wan Kenobi.

**To be continued…**

**Please let me know what you think! **

**This chapter doesn't really take the story anywhere but I think it is necessary. The next chapter really moves the story forward. **

**Next chapter: **Obi-Wan goes investigating and learns something interesting…

**I hope to post the next chapter next week! **

**the-writer1988**


	8. Chapter 8: The Plot

**A/N) Finally this chapter is done. In which Obi-Wan follows his instincts. Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to leave comments! **

* * *

**The Protector**

**Chapter 8: The Plot**

The cool breeze air hit his face as he stepped out of the house and out underneath the starry sky. Hands were thrust into his pockets, something that Obi-Wan rarely did; that was more an Anakin trait than a Kenobi one. His mind was buzzing, and he felt a bit of light relief as if a bit of worry had been lifted from his shoulders.

He had told his mother and his sister and they hadn't judged him. They hadn't turned their backs on him. He didn't feel that he deserved it but perhaps he did?

_Whatever you may believe, Obi-Wan, it is the opposite you should have faith in. _

"Maybe I'd feel I deserved their appreciation if I proved that I wasn't useless as a Jedi," he said, knowing that what he said wasn't true. Those words stemmed from Alex's kidnap.

_You will save him, Obi-Wan. _

"Yet I couldn't before," he added bitterly.

_No, you couldn't, but now you can. _

"Huh? What do you mean?" asked Obi-Wan curiously. What was his old mentor going on about?

_Use the Force. Don't shy away from it. It will show you your path… _Qui-Gon's voice faded from his mind, disappearing as quickly as it had come. It was unnerving thinking you were alone and then finding out that you weren't. Qui-Gon's spirit – or whatever he was – seemed to have perfected a ninja technique of surprise.

Frowning Obi-Wan considered his former mentor's words. Should he take the risk? Qui-Gon obviously thought he was capable…

"Just because you use the Force it doesn't mean you are going to become like Dooku," muttered Obi-Wan under his breath. He felt calmer having spoken his fear aloud, and then he turned towards the boundary of the property, closing his eyes and feeling out with the Force.

It flooded his soul, dancing through him, welcoming him home. Meditation hadn't felt like this – he had still felt weary, worried and scared, yet now he felt accepted, a welcoming feeling spread through him.

And he reached out, seeking forwards. He focused upon the essence of Alex Kenobi. The boy had stood where Obi-Wan was standing a few days ago. There were still traces of him there. So he followed the boy's lingering trace, plunging deep into the flow of the Force, following his instincts.

It didn't take him past the fair, no, the kidnappers had doubled back, taking Alex past his family home. Obi-Wan detected fear and knew that Alex had been screaming for his father as he had been taken past the home he had grown up in.

Obi-Wan continued tracking his nephew, his path found him walking through fields, past small villages as he followed his instincts. His own desire was to find Alex and return him safely to his family. He did not intend to fail this time.

It was dark and he could barely see the path in front of him. Clouds covered the starry sky, but the Force showed him the way forward, his mind focused on only one thing. He didn't even stop to consider what his disappearance might do to his family: he knew that he was doing the right thing. Tracking Alex was what he had to do – there was no other way forward for him.

Wherever Alex was being held it was far out: he estimated he must have walked and jogged nearly ten miles in the last few hours. He knew time had flown by. He had been gone for nearly half of Stewjon's night. He didn't have any weapons on him, if by some miracle he did locate Alex, how would he be able to defend himself?

_You will find a way. _

As he heard that, Obi-Wan had the feeling that his old mentor was right. The Force was open to him, he could read that it was leading him on the path to victory, not to failure, but there was a darkness to the path that he still had to overcome. Worry coursed through him as he considered that but he realised that allowing himself to get distracted at this critical time was not going to benefit Alex.

The young boy's fate was in his hands. A small distraction could cost the boy his life.

Though he felt the darkness in his path reaching out for him, Obi-Wan focused on his task, choosing to ignore the beckoning darkness, not wishing for it to consume him again. It took a lot of his mental willpower to carry on walking and to not run away. His mind still immersed within the cool flow of the Force, he continued on his path.

* * *

He had lost count hours ago how long he had been walking for. The sun was starting to peak over the landscape on the horizon as he neared a cliff-face, close to the Byway Sea. The sea was located over the cliff-face but his instincts were pointing him towards the hill that merged into the cliff.

Moving slower now, aware that it felt like Alex was close, Obi-Wan lowered himself to the ground, beginning to crawl, his eyes searching the dying night, his hands moving forward, feeling for any entrance that could be hidden. His mind was screaming at him that it wasn't far, that he was close to a way in.

Alex's presence seemed to be below the earth: an underground lair then.

Obi-Wan pulled himself out of the Force. He had followed its will throughout the night and he hadn't stopped; he hadn't even thought of what could go wrong, he hadn't even thought of what his family would do it they found him missing, but the feeling was there. He was doing the right thing.

He felt stronger than he had in a while: his determination to ensure Alex's freedom a priority. Now, crawling forward, he moved up the hill until he came halfway to its peak where his hand brushed something metal hiding within the tall tufts of grass. Curiosity overcame him and he started to pull out the tufts of grass which were turned out to be artificial. Using both his hands he swiped away minimal amount of dirt and grass lying atop the small metal hole.

He didn't have a weapon on him and he paused in his task unsure of whether he could continue.

_You won't need a lightsaber. _

Qui-Gon was watching over him, his presence soothing as Obi-Wan steeled himself. Gritting his teeth and determination seeping through him, Obi-Wan heaved at the handle on the hole top, yanking it upwards. He looked down and found darkness beneath him. He took a risk and jumped.

* * *

He landed by a sewage canal, his feet teetering on the edge of the walkway beside it but he maintained his balance. He could barely see his surroundings though dim lights seemed to have been embedded within the walls. He really should have brought a torch.

Inspecting his surroundings through touch he eventually found a small opening in the wall. Slipping inside the tight spot (it was just big enough to fit two people), Obi-Wan walked carefully down the passage, his senses alert for any sign of movement.

He paused as he neared the wider opening as his ears heard footsteps coming towards where he hid. A man walked past the small passage. In the man's holster behind him was a blaster. It looked loose and Obi-Wan reached out with the Force and grasped it, tugging the weapon free from its holster, unbeknownst to its owner, and floating it back towards him.

The blaster felt strange in his hands, a weapon he was unused to touching. He would have preferred a lightsaber, but no matter how much he wished he had brought his with him to Stewjon, he was glad that he didn't have a Jedi's weapon. Who knew what damage he could do with it?

Peering around the end of the passageway, the man whose blaster he had taken had disappeared around another corner. Fuelled with determination, Obi-Wan hurried in the opposite direction, sensing for Alex's signature and following it as it grew nearer and nearer.

Several times he had to duck into small crevices in the wall as other people walked past him. He could sense that Alex was very close now, probably just a few metres down the hall he was in, when a door to the left, but slightly further up the hall opened and two men walked out.

Obi-Wan ducked back into a darkened corner, trying to shield himself with the Force.

"What happens now?" asked one of the men who had longish black hair past his shoulders, a scruffy beard and wore tunics.

The second man appeared to be much older, around Ben Kenobi's age. In fact he seemed to resemble his father too… Obi-Wan frowned, his mind considering the possibilities. He knew his uncle had been released from prison a few years ago but he hadn't made contact with the rest of the Kenobi family. Could it be the same man?

"We wait for our benefactors to arrive," said the older man.

"Are you going to tell me who they are?" queried the younger man. "Even if your plan works, how will the people accept us?"

"I've told you plenty of times: fear. Our allies are the Separatists. So they may have fallen but they still have a formidable droid army that is capable of taking over a world. Danja, we have the advantage here. As long as the Separatists hold that little sprog of my brother's son then that family will do everything I ask," replied the man evenly.

"But they are our family," the younger of the two pointed out.

"That is in-material. Son, you were not just meant to be a common labourer. You were meant to lead our people to glory. I am doing this for you, so that you inherit what is rightfully yours."

By the tone of their voices and what they spoke about, it was obvious that the older of the man was Michael Kenobi, the man responsible for kidnapping Obi-Wan and giving him to the Jedi illegally. The younger man must be one of his sons. Obi-Wan strained his hearing, trying to capture every word. The two had stopped in the corridor, and he shrunk back into his dark corner, seeking to hide himself further in the shadows, fervently hoping that he would not be discovered. It was important he rescued Alex: without Alex, Michael would not have a bargaining chip.

Obviously the boy was of some value to the Separatists. If Alex fell into the hands of General Grievous (and judging by his visions, Obi-Wan was sure his nephew would do so) then the droid leader would be able to use Alex's position as a means of controlling Owen and Stewjon's government. Did Grievous know who was he truly dealing with? Did he even know that Michael Kenobi was related to Obi-Wan Kenobi?

"But you can't trust the Separatists!" hissed back the younger man.

"Maybe but I do have the boy. They want a way of controlling the government, I have it, but only after they've met my terms!" hissed Michael Kenobi.

"What are you planning?" the younger man almost sounded appalled.

"My brother. He ruined my life. He and that wretched Jedi son of his. Neither of them were meant to be the heirs but they were. Fortunately, my dear brother will hardly be a match for General Grievous."

"This is what that droid general has promised you?" asked the younger man, who Obi-Wan assumed. "He will kill your brother if you give him the means to control the planet? Father, if you take this path, society will hate us!"

The man who was Michael Kenobi snorted. "They already do. We cannot change that."

The younger man sighed, defeated by his own father's vehement denials.

"The boy will be given to the Separatists after my brother's death. My dear nephew will do anything to save his son. The government will crumble and the Separatists will take this world. I have been promised a seat of power if I aid them. I am willing to risk this to give us the power that we deserve. I spent time in prison for trying to have what should – and is – rightfully mine."

Obi-Wan stilled his breathing. So this was all a plot for his uncle to get power, and he had decided to enlist the aid of the Separatists. This complicated things. Alex had been taken for a reason but it wasn't for what Obi-Wan had considered it might be. He hadn't thought that this could be for revenge. Clearly Michael resented his brother and felt that Ben Kenobi had wronged him enough that he deserved death.

Biting his bottom lip, Obi-Wan considered his options. He could stop this now and effectively kill his uncle but he knew he couldn't do that, he could leave while he still could, or he could rescue Alex and hope that they could escape before they were noticed, though he had the terrible feeling that if he opened the door to Alex's cell, the whole place would go off with alarms.

His uncle and cousin moved further away, fervently discussing their coming actions and Obi-Wan slipped away, walking toward the door that his uncle and cousin had emerged from. The door had mostly closed but hadn't locked into the latch so he pulled it open, slipping inside the room.

The room was barely lit and tucked up in a cage, his little face streaked with tears was Alex Kenobi. Obi-Wan knelt down next to the cage. "Alex…"

The young boy looked up at him, his eyes wide in surprise and confusion.

"It's alright," whispered Obi-Wan. "I'm here to rescue you. Take you back to your father."

The boy shook his head. His lips stammered as he tried to form a response but he was clearly too frightened to speak.

Glancing at the lock on the cage door, he focused the Force on the inner mechanisms. This was something he usually gave to Anakin to do, but his former apprentice had taught him this neat trick, which allowed him to manipulate the locking mechanisms and release it.

The locked clicked up and Obi-Wan pulled open the door, sliding back to give Alex space to move out, but the boy didn't move.

He slowly held out a hand. Alex had been taught to dislike him, to fear him even. It would take more than trust for the boy to take his hand: it would take courage.

"Alex, I'm not going to hurt you. I can get you out of here and take you home. Trust me." He swallowed. "Your father is waiting for you." That was true.

It took more than a few minutes for Alex to move from his curled up position in his dimmed cell. But finally he crawled out of the cage. Obi-Wan kept listening for any sign of movement. He couldn't see any security cams in the room which made him highly suspicious but he hoped that luck might just be with him.

Another five minutes passed, time was ticking away, and then the smaller hands grasped his and Obi-Wan gently pulled the boy into his arms, lifting him onto his feet so that the young boy stood facing him.

"Alex, I'm going to get you out of here but you have to trust me. Follow me, and if you see anything or anyone that makes you scared, tell me, okay?" asked Obi-Wan.

Alex nodded numbly, his eyes sparkling with fear and tears.

Swallowing, Obi-Wan clutched the boy's hand and slowly edged out of the cell, probing his surroundings with the Force to ensure that no one else was coming. Then, with a leap of faith, he stepped out into the corridor.

It was clear, and relief swept through him.

He followed his own path back, Alex creeping along behind him, pushing the boy into crevices as he heard footsteps of approaching people, shielding them both with the Force.

It was amazing that they managed to get back to the sewage canal without being noticed, though Obi-Wan couldn't help but feel that his arrival hadn't gone unnoticed. His uncle, if he knew, could be thinking that letting them get complacent was the best way to ensure a successful recapture.

He turned back to the small boy, kneeling down to his height so he was slightly looking up at the boy. "Now, Alex, we need to get back up to that hole. It will take us back outside. Will you trust me enough to hold onto me around my neck?"

The boy hesitated, his body still trembling.

"I won't hurt you, I promise."

Alex nodded slightly, his voice trembling as he finally spoke. "I… trust… you."

Obi-Wan gave the boy a warm smile, one that he could barely see, but it was the thought that counts. "Climb up onto my back. Once we are above ground, I will set you down again."

Scrambling up onto Obi-Wan's back, Alex clutching around his neck, Obi-Wan walked to the edge of the sewer and with a burst of Force energy, leapt up through the hole, out onto the side of the grassy hill.

The sun was almost up, his time in the base having been minimal.

Lowering Alex to the ground, Obi-Wan asked him: "We need to get you back to your father. Do you think you could run beside me?"

The boy hesitated but finally nodded. "I think so…"

"Good," smiled Obi-Wan gently, patting the boy on the shoulders. He started to jog, glancing beside him to find Alex running along beside him.

The first part was over; the second part was getting Alex back home safely.

But was his home truly safe if their entire world was under threat from invasion by General Grievous?

Obi-Wan couldn't help but have a bad feeling in the pit of a stomach.

For now he couldn't worry about the consequences; he had to get Alex back home safely. He'd promised himself he would, and he would do so. He would not fail anyone again.

**To be continued…**

**Please let me know what you think! **

**Erm so there you go, now you know the plot and why Alex was taken! And just because he's been rescued does not mean he is out of the woods yet… :D **

**My apologies in the delay of posting of this chapter. It is very difficult balancing university work with fic writing. I'm not going to set days to update now, I'll just post when a chapter is ready. **

**Hopefully this chapter isn't too bad… **

**Next chapter: **Invasion.

**Until next time!**

**the-writer1988**


	9. Chapter 9: Invasion

**A/N) Thank you for all the reviews and comments! I am honestly surprised that I am updating today but I just ended up writing this chapter quite quickly. And its longer too. I can't promise if the next chapter will be ready for next Tuesday as I have a mock exam this Friday so I am going to be revising… but we'll see what happens… I may surprise myself again!**

**A reviewer mentioned about normal sounding names in Star Wars, in regards to the naming of Michael Kenobi... Well, I assume they must exist because you've got Luke and Ben and Owen which are normal names and appear in the original trilogy... so that is why there is a mixture of different names in Obi-Wan's family in this story. :) **

**Enjoy!**

* * *

**The Protector**

**Chapter 9: Invasion**

When Rena went to wake her brother the following morning she was surprised to see that his bed hadn't been slept in, the covers still pristine and unwrinkled from the morning before. She frowned as she considered where Obi-Wan had gone after their chat last night. He had left the house but he hadn't come back in as far she was aware of.

Quietly, so as not to disturb her parents, she tiptoed out of her brother's room and down the stairs to the front door, finding that it opened easily. It hadn't been locked all night. Curiosity flared within her as she wondered exactly where Obi-Wan had gone that necessitated him in not coming back.

Gnawing at her bottom lip, Rena took the plunge and stepped outside, slipping on her shoes as she did so. The chill air breezed around her and goose pimples appeared on her arms as she shivered involuntarily.

She searched the vast land, looking for any signs that might indicate the direction her Jedi brother had gone. His footsteps were light, he was not easily tracked. Or rather as a Jedi he took more precaution than usual. Rena sighed, not able to find anything any clue as to where he had gone or why he had not returned. There was a niggling feeling in the pit of her stomach that told her where he may have gone.

She wasn't sure what to do, whether to stay outside in the cold air and wait or go back inside and pretend that he had just gone out and that he would return soon. Rena bit her lip, taking one last walk around the perimeter of the house.

It was then, in the distance, she saw two lowly figures jogging towards the boundary of the house. Her heart leapt in her chest, her eyes sparkling with wonder, and she knew that it was her brother and her nephew making a run to the house.

Rena ran forward, not caring that she was wore little save a nighty. Who would see her here? The two figures reached the boundary before she did, crossing the barriers and entering the property.

"Aunt Rena!" the smallest figure shouted with joy and ran towards her, confirming Rena's suspicions of what Obi-Wan had done, what he had gone to do.

The boy ran into her outstretched arms, sobbing with relief.

Obi-Wan slowly walked up to her, an embarrassed look on his face.

"You got him back," said Rena, smiling through the boy's messy hair.

"It wasn't any trouble," he shrugged, warding it off as if it was nothing.

"How?" she queried numbly, her eyes searching his face for any sign of a hint.

Obi-Wan smiled at her. "I'd rather this was something that was spoken about inside. If father has security measures in place he needs to activate them now rather than allow anyone to access the land. I cannot guarantee that we will be left alone, especially after what I've learnt about why Alex was taken in the first place."

Nodding, Rena took Alex's hand and rushed him inside, her older brother following her.

Whilst Obi-Wan spoke to his parents, Rena would take Alex back to his father. She reached the top of the stairs and turned to the left towards Owen's rooms. Casting a glance back at her other brother, she saw him heading down the opposite hallway to his parent's rooms.

Rena kept hold of Alex's hand as they neared Owen's room. She tapped on the door but there was no reply so she pressed the admittance button and it slid open. The room was bathed in darkness, save for a single solitary candle.

"Owen?" she breathed. Her brother had always liked the dark. Whenever he had troubles, she would find him in his room like this all the time. "There is someone here who would like to see you."

"I don't want to see _him_," came the sharp reply.

Owen clearly thought that Rena had brought Obi-Wan with her to attempt reconciliation between the two estranged brothers.

Rena gently pushed Alex forward into the darkness. She whispered to him: "Go on, say something."

Alex trembled slightly. "Dad? It's me."

There was silence, an almost engulfing one when a light flicked on and Owen was sitting up in his bed, his eyes completely wide with shock at seeing his lost son standing in his bedroom.

"It can't be. I have to be dreaming," he said, reaching forward to brush his son's cheek with his fingers. "How?" But it seemed that he had already realised who had brought his son back to him before he had even asked that question. "Obi-Wan did, didn't he?"

Rena nodded numbly. "He did."

Owen swallowed, unable to say a word.

"You don't have to think about it now, but when you can, consider what he has done for you despite your accusations. He's not who you think he is… And I think we are all going to need our family to remain together…" explained Rena. "I think this is just the beginning."

Owen didn't reply for Alex had leapt onto his bed and was hugging his father as tightly as he possibly could. The two of them simply did not want to let go of one another, afraid that if they did they would lose each other again.

Rena decided it would be best to leave the two alone. This was a private moment and it was up to Owen to cross the bridge and make peace with his brother. Obi-Wan had done something extraordinary for him: he had come through for his nephew and his brother, and that was something that shouldn't be dismissed.

* * *

Obi-Wan stood in the kitchen, with his mother and father sitting at the table when Rena walked in. "Where's Owen?" He felt that it was important that his brother hear what he had to say.

Rena motioned with her eyes to the ceiling. "With Alex."

Judging by the non-reactions of their parents, Obi-Wan had already informed them that he had retrieved Alex from his kidnappers. "I think Owen should be here. What I have to say concerns him to. Alex isn't the only one in danger."

Rena nodded. "I'll go and see if he can come down. He won't want to have Alex out of his sight."

"That doesn't matter," Obi-Wan dismissed. "Alex should be here. He may be able to give us some information if he saw anything at all. I didn't feel it was right to question him on the way home. I'd rather Owen be here and have his permission rather than risk his ire." If he had to fix the problems between himself and his brother, the only way to do that was to ensure that Owen made the decisions. Owen would continue to resent him if he didn't maintain some control.

"Ok," replied Rena. She left the kitchen leaving Obi-Wan with his parents.

"Have you done what I requested?" asked Obi-Wan, looking at his father.

Ben inclined his head. "I did. If you believe this home is under threat then I will do everything I can to ensure my family's safety. Though you cannot see our security system, there is a force field active that will prevent anyone from crossing into our land. We also have security droids ready to defend us if we need to employ them, but that only happens if anyone is capable of crossing through the barrier. Hopefully any threat to us will remain outside the perimeter."

Obi-Wan stroked his beard. "There will always be a way for someone to get through a security field. Fighting in a war has taught me that." There was the possibility that Michael Kenobi knew of a way to deactivate the system without his own brother knowing about it. "Is there a way we can make the force field visible? I'd feel safer knowing that I can see it."

Ben frowned but finally nodded. "It can be done."

"Can you do it?" asked Obi-Wan. "It might give us the advantage." He didn't want to take any risks. If Grievous was coming, this house would be the place he would attack first, primarily because of its importance to the local populace on Stewjon. The Kenobi family was revered enough that their deaths or capture would be a priority for any potential invader. Michael Kenobi had clearly begun to set that plan in motion by ordering the kidnap of Alex.

"I can do it now, but it may take at least half an hour before I can change the system enough to make our shields visible to the naked eye," answered Ben honestly. "It's an old system but an effective one."

Obi-Wan smiled gently. "It will do." He looked up as Rena reentered the kitchen with Owen in tow and Alex tottering beside them, his right hand gripped in his father's left. Owen nodded slightly at his brother but did not acknowledge. "But it's best to wait until after I've explained what I know. At least then you will have a measure of how much danger we are in."

He waited until everyone was sat down; Alex perched in his father's lap. Obi-Wan chose to ignore Owen's burning stare but he could not detect any hate in his Force essence. If that was anything to go by his brother was mellowing, if only for now due to the return of his son to his arms.

"Alex was being held by Michael Kenobi," stated Obi-Wan. Better to get the truth out there rather than tiptoe over it.

"My brother?" Ben looked positively shocked. "But why?"

"It appears he may have allied himself with the remnants of the Separatists, specifically General Grievous. Alex was meant to be a bargaining chip to control the government. As part of the deal between the two, Grievous is supposed to come and kill you," he glanced at his father, "and probably any of the family that resists him. Grievous has promised him power on this planet providing Michael gives him the means to control us. Again: Alex. I don't know how far away the Separatists may be, but I think it may be too late to try to stop them coming here. Even if I called in the Republic to help…" Obi-Wan was not entirely sure if he truly wanted to involve them anyway. He had the feeling that whatever was going to conspire on Stewjon he had to be the one to solve it.

"So Stewjon is under threat of invasion?" whispered Lau-rie, sounding a little frightened by that prospect.

"Very likely," admitted Obi-Wan. "The Clone Wars have ended… but Grievous is a law onto his own. He will not join the Republic and he continues to tear across the galaxy. The fact that he is coming here suggests that he hopes to build a powerbase here. Stewjon is relatively far from the main Republic but we are still a part of it. He could potentially take quite a few outer lying worlds without the Republic realising, using these worlds to build up an army in secret and then advance again when he is ready to. He will use and manipulate anyone who he feels he can control. Michael is just a pawn in a much larger game. He may believe that he is the one using Grievous but in reality Grievous will just kill him when his use is over." He sighed, almost feeling sorry for the man. "The damage he has done to this family matters little in respect of this. Unknowingly he has signed his own death certificate. I'd rather he didn't die when it is perfectly possible to still keep this family intact, and that includes Michael's children. Even the son of his I saw seemed reluctant in what his father was doing. The sins of the father should not automatically mean the shunning of the rest."

Ben lowered his head. "No, it shouldn't," he agreed. "We tried to keep contact and the years Michael spent in prison… we had a good relationship with them but when he got released we lost contact with them both. Michael's sons joined him in exile. Danja was the one who loathed what his father had done… To this day we never knew why he broke ties with us."

The name stirred in Obi-Wan's mind. "I think… I think Danja was the son who I overheard talking to Michael… How many children does my uncle have?" He hadn't really found out before.

"Two," answered Owen quietly. "Danja and Maje Kenobi. Both boys. When I was growing up I used to see them a lot. But, well, you heard what happened. We did see less of them when they officially became adults. That might have been when they started to see their father more. Maje's attitude towards me changed and Danja ceased to confide in me like he used to."

"So Michael was poisoning his sons from the moment he could see them again…" frowned Obi-Wan. "They're not much older than me, are they?"

Ben shook his head. "Maje is a few months older then you and Danja is three years older. They were good boys. Their mother died from heartbreak seven years after Michael's imprisonment. Her health slowly detoriated after Michael's crime. She couldn't believe that he would stoop to such a thing. Danja was thirteen when he and his brother moved in with us. It was Maje who wanted to see his father again when he turned eighteen… I think he forced Danja to go with him… And that was when Michael began to get his claws into them again." It was obviously something he felt ashamed of because this was the first time Obi-Wan had really heard of how close his two cousins had been to the rest of their family.

"Danja could come in useful… If he's still reluctant now…" theorised Obi-Wan, "what is keeping him with his father?"

"Maje probably," answered Owen darkly. "He always idolised his father despite his crimes. The brothers were very close."

A silence fell between them all and Obi-Wan considered what he had learnt.

There was the possibility of a potential ally with one of his cousins. Was there a way to make contact? It was something he did not want to write off.

"What happens now?" asked Rena.

"As soon as they realise Alex is missing they will try to get him back," replied Obi-Wan. He glanced at the boy, seeking Owen's permission to talk to him.

A reluctant incline of the head came from his brother and Obi-Wan took that has confirmation that he could question the boy. He knew the boy was young but he was intelligent enough to pick up on things.

"Alex… Did you see or hear anything that could be of use to us?"

Alex was only six. There was a chance he wouldn't be able to but it was something they had to try, just in case.

The boy nodded ever so slowly, his auburn hair falling in front of his eyes and he brushed it back with his right hand. "They said they were gonna give me to the droids. They were gonna get granddad. And dad would do what they wanted." He sniffed as he shivered in his father's arms. "They said they would give me to the droids tonight."

Obi-Wan stiffened. That changed things. If what Alex said was true then it was likely the Separatist fleet would already be in the far reaches of the system. They didn't have much time at all to prepare for any invasion. If they were intending to arrive at night to give them the element of surprise… "Thank you, Alex."

Owen gripped his son tightly in his arms, his animosity towards his older brother having dulled due to the peril they all seemed to be in. "What do we do?"

Obi-Wan's gaze turned steely. "We fight back. We do what they least expect too. Hide and fight. Is there anywhere we can go that Michael would not know of?"

"We have a basement here," said Ben, "but my brother would know of it…" He stroked his chin, rather like his older son did. "There is a place that I know of… an old bunker. Stewjon used to suffer from wars thousands of years ago… Some of the old bases have been kept in good condition just in case we have ever needed of them. If you are intending on going on the offensive they would be a good staging ground."

Obi-Wan nodded, clenching his fists together. "How many people would they hold? Could they house a resistance group?" The only way they could succeed at such short notice was to let the planet be overrun, but make critical attacks against the invaders at specific times. Stewjon had virtually no military weapons, barely an army to fend off against such a force.

But they did have a Jedi General, trained in the art of war, capable of strategy that had won him many battles during the Clone Wars… If they played their cards right, Stewjon's population could fight back and win. For the first time in a long while he felt normal. He had something to live for, to fight for… And that was what a Jedi had to do.

"They could…" answered his father. "All the systems are maintained by select government officials so everything should be in good working order…"

"Good, because that is where all of us need to go. Even with the defences around this house, they will come here first and batter them down until they are on this doorstep," said Obi-Wan, not wanting to worry his family but knowing that he had to be brutally honest. "The next step we need to do is to alert the government and the surrounding villages. Anyone who can join us has to otherwise our endeavour will fail."

Lau-rie shivered. "We can't stop the Separatists from coming here?"

"No," said Obi-Wan, shaking his head. "They'll have scouts in the system stopping anyone from leaving the planet and getting word out. The best we can do right now is to prepare ourselves. The more people we can help now before they invade then the more chance we have of saving the planet."

"Bro and I can help gather as many people we can," volunteered Rena. Her husband would help regardless. "Owen, I'm sure you want to make certain that Alex is safe… I think you should go to the bunkers and set everything up."

Owen agreed numbly. They were right: he didn't want to leave Alex.

"Then it is settled?" Obi-Wan looked around the table, his gaze sweeping every face. "We fight back?"

A resounding yes echoed back to him.

* * *

By the time night had fallen, the Kenobi family had moved into one of the old bunker sites situated under one of the grass plains. Most of the villagers living close to their home had also joined them with every member of their family they could muster.

Obi-Wan had trekked into the capital, only to find that he couldn't gain admittance to the city as he did not have a relevant pass to gain entry. Someone, inside the government, was already putting in place the necessary changes to ensure that the population was enslaved. He figured that it had to be his uncle behind it. He appeared to have quite a loyal following, perhaps paid off for their services in bringing him to the power he so desperately wanted.

Obi-Wan didn't want to risk a transmission. As of now, Grievous did not know that a Jedi was on world – he wanted to keep it that way for as long as he possibly could.

So he had made his way back to the bunkers to join his family and the growing resistance. He hated the thought of leaving some to the mercy of the Separatists but he had no choice.

In a few short hours a resistance had been formed and Obi-Wan was the unofficial leader of it, codenamed 'the Master'.

Now they had to wait… remain underground while the world fell into the grip of General Grievous and when they least expected it, he would begin his attacks upon the droid General and his allies, seeking to ultimately free his planet.

* * *

Michael Kenobi was livid.

The escape of the boy ruined his immediate plans. The Separatist fleet was already breaking through the atmosphere.

How could the boy have escaped? More importantly who had helped him?

His son, Maje, had warned him to add security cameras to the hide-out, but he hadn't, choosing to ignore that, believing that his base was not locatable. He had been wrong to think of such a folly.

It was his own fault but he still chose to punish the sentries whose job it was to prevent anyone from finding them. They had failed their job and had been punished accordingly.

He was certain the boy would be hidden accordingly. He wasn't dealing with just an ordinary member of his family. Someone had been able to enter his domain and leave it without leaving behind a single trace. It worried him that he could have an adversary out there… someone who had powers he did not.

He stood in the grassy plain, both his sons standing either side of him. The lead Separatist troop transport landed metres away from him, and as the engines cooled, the ramp opened up to reveal battalions of battle droids, ready to be commanded.

General Grievous strode down the ramp, full of authority, his demeanour not one to cross. At his sides were two lightsabers. Michael knew to be weary of those. The metallic monster stopped in front of him.

"You are the one that I have been dealing with?" wheezed the General.

"Yes," answered Michael. He had never told the General his true name. He had heard of the battles that had taken place between Grievous and his Jedi nephew. He was sure the name Kenobi would cause the monster to kill him. Instead he used his deceased wife's maiden name: Gregon.

"Where is the boy?" the droid General demanded, rising a clawed fist in Michael's face.

Michael kept his stance despite the fear that ran through him. "He… escaped."

Grievous growled angrily. "You had better retrieve him fast otherwise our deal is off!"

He noticed his two sons move slightly back. He knew that neither Danje nor Maje agreed with his tactic of dealing with the Separatists. It was the first thing they had disagreed on in years.

"I don't know where he could be. The family shields are in place and I cannot break through." He raised his hands in defence as Grievous leaned forward growling fiercely. "But I have ensured that the government and the city are ripe for invasion. Even without the boy, the planet is yours!"

"Yet it suggests that our invasion has been prepared for. Whoever rescued the brat will know of our attack," hissed Grievous. "We must crush them before any resistance begins!"

Michael cringed. He didn't want to consider the possibility that someone was already undermining his hard work before it had even begun. "I can send out scouts…"

"No. I will deal with any puny resistance if it comes. We will march on the city and take it tonight! With the population under my control, anyone who resists will swiftly find that others are punished for their lack of respect in authority." Grievous turned and started to march back, issuing instructions to the droids under his control.

Michael felt slightly unnerved.

"We did tell you that trusting the Separatists was not a good plan," whispered Maje.

"We don't know that. We may have lost the boy but it doesn't matter. My brother is weak. They will have run away. We can still use this to our advantage," explained Michael. He had to have that hope that his younger brother had run away, had heard of the invasion and decided to flee, leaving Stewjon in the hands of a much better individual.

"And how long do you expect us to be able to hide our relation to the Kenobi's? Everyone here knows you, dad, and everyone knows our cousin is a Jedi Master!" retorted Maje. "If that General finds out he will kill us just for simply having the surname Kenobi!"

Michael sighed, his shoulders slumping. "If we want power it is a risk we are going to have to take." He glanced at both of his sons. "If Grievous does learn of our family connection then hopefully he won't act rashly against us without gaining the full facts. When he learns what I did and how I am perceived with the public then he will realise that I am barely a threat to him! I am an old man now."

"That's if he bothers to look you up. He probably won't," retorted Maje, his face colouring in supressed anger.

Shaking his head, Michael dismissed his son's concerns. Maje used to support him in everything, but in the last few months his attitude had changed, and that had been ever since his father had started the process of gaining aid from an external force. When Grievous had first taken his offer, his sons had been horrified. He figured that Maje and Danje stayed because they had nowhere else to go. Even if that was the case they would be rewarded for their loyalty: they would get what was rightfully theirs.

His doubts in his mind continued to whirl but Michael fought them away. He watched, for a while, as Grievous prepared his troops for an attack on the city.

The time had come.

The shunned family would rise and the powerful would fall.

It had been a long time in coming.

* * *

By morning the population of Stewjon had been enslaved. Grievous' forces had taken the city, Sti. Any members of the government had been shot on sight, and Michael Kenobi had been installed as Minister of the People, just as the droid general had promised.

From afar, hidden on the roof of one of the top most towers of the main city, Obi-Wan Kenobi watched intently, taking in any information that he could gather.

For now he needed to reconnaissance, ready to plan attacks later. He was not the only one who was risking their lives to do this.

They would convene later and begin to make plans.

But he knew that Grievous was scouting the area for the family that had escaped him. They couldn't act yet, but they could plan, and when they made their move, Grievous would certainly know who exactly was a current resident of the planet he had just invaded.

**To be continued…**

**Please let me know what you think! **

**So, Grievous is on Stewjon. The planet's population is quite small and they do not have many defences which is why there has been quite a quick take-over but Obi-Wan's quick thinking means that he does have a chance of fighting back but only when they can. **

**Next chapter: **The Resistance of Stewjon, in which things can go right and wrong for the people…

**Hopefully will post next week! **

**Until then,**

**the-writer1988**


	10. Chapter 10: The Kenobi Cousin

**A/N) Thank you for the comments! Here is the next chapter. A bit of a warning there is a time skip of a few weeks midway through this chapter. And this chapter title went through so many changes its ridiculous. Finally settled on this, and even then it isn't any good! **

**Enjoy!**

* * *

**The Protector **

**Chapter 10: The Kenobi Cousin**

Anakin had rubbed off on him: that much was clear. Stuck in the bunkers for the past two weeks had been hell. Grievous' army scoured the land for any sign of the missing portion of the population. A register had been taken of the slave population and it had found a number of people missing. The droid General had realised someone was working against him and refused to keep his army in one place until he had located the missing slaves despite the fact that he had never owned them anyway.

That made making attacks very difficult and Obi-Wan had decided to not send anyone out on any risky missions. If they were captured and tortured they could potentially betray the small resistance they had set up.

Two weeks was a very long time to stay hidden in such cramped conditions. There was hardly any room for people to sleep and live in. Even the main control area was being used as a bedding area.

At least one hundred and fifty people had escaped capture by the Separatists after the initial take-over, joining the already four hundred people that had been gathered due to Obi-Wan's quick thinking of forming a resistance before the threat had established itself. Rather, currently, the resistance was more a hiding place until they could feel they could risk being seen in the open. It was only a small number but five hundred and fifty people could still do quite a lot of damage.

Even now the droid General was not letting up his army. He was determined to capture the survivors. From his reconnaissance Obi-Wan had discovered that Grievous was concerned that the Republic would learn of his location before he was ready to push forward with the war again.

Grievous was monitoring all communication channels, and Obi-Wan did not think that he had the ability to encrypt a channel to send a message. No, he felt that the Force wanted him to do this on his own.

The past few weeks had given him a chance to re-evaluate his place. He was a leader, and he was a protector. He was responsible for ensuring the safety of everyone under his care. They trusted him to save their planet. Those that were part of the resistance were now well aware that he was the heir that had been given to the Jedi Order. None of them seemed to care about what he had done during the war. Even if they had of done they were ignoring it because he was here on Stewjon, helping them against a foe that not even they could defeat without external help from someone with experience against the Separatists.

Obi-Wan poured over maps of Stewjon, collecting the information that came in from surveillance, trying to decide what the best form of action was. They had stayed silent too long but he also knew that Grievous wouldn't stop until he found what he was looking for. A part of him toyed with the idea of revealing himself to Grievous but he felt that wasn't the right time.

When he had time to meditate he thought he felt the Force guiding him, showing him what he had to do. Qui-Gon hadn't spoken to him in a long while but with so many people around and with so much stuff to do he didn't feel lonely.

He did feel, however, an enormous weight on his shoulders. The trust these people had in him was enough to even make his healing soul crumble, but he refused to bow to the pressure of failure. Hadn't he proven to himself already that he was still a Jedi?

He had rescued Alex, brought him back to his family. Owen's opinion of him had changed though he was still weary of the Jedi General, however worked with his older brother to keep the resistance afloat. Owen and Obi-Wan had found common ground: to save their birth world.

Obi-Wan knew he still had to talk to Owen in confidence about his time in the Clone Wars: he owed his brother that much, but it was enough that Owen had put aside his own opinions far enough to allow a working relationship to manifest.

So deeply was he in his thoughts about his brother that Obi-Wan did not notice someone standing behind him in the control centre near the mapping desk. When he turned, the Jedi nearly jumped out of his skin. Obi-Wan thought he should have been prepared for someone to be standing behind him. The control area was more of a home then a military planning centre. He wasn't alone in the centre, but he had been left alone to consider future actions.

"Bro," Obi-Wan said. He had sent Bro on an assignment that morning: it had probably gone past changeover time. He usually had reports sent to him on his data-pad but there was something that his brother-in-law needed to say to him. He could sense that much in the Force. "What is it?"

"Is there anywhere more private we could go?" Bro asked quietly.

Obi-Wan nodded. "The storage facility down the corridor will do." There was at least one area that was free of anyone living in the room: they needed it to store equipment. Obi-Wan had been one of the few that had made daring attacks on the Separatist minor command centres to retrieve ammunitions and supplies that would aid their cause. The difficult part was ensuring that they did have enough food for people but they were holding out.

He sat down on a sealed crate in the small storage room. At least fifty boxes were stacked into this tiny little room. It was dark and dreary: Obi-Wan chose to conserve electricity when he could. Only dim lighting made it possible for him to see Bro. "What do you know?"

Bro looked uncomfortable, almost sheepish at what he had to say. "It was just something I overheard one of those droids say when I was out just now."

"Do they know about us?" asked Obi-Wan. That was his one worry: that one of his people would be tracked back to base, bringing the entire Separatist army down on their heads.

Bro shook his head. "No. But I think that General dude has realised a Jedi might be involved."

"Ah." That was unexpected. He had been so careful.

"They found your ship, the one you have in the space-port a few miles from our home," continued Bro. "They said it had been disguised but the boss recognised it for what it was straight away."

Obi-Wan groaned. "They found my star-fighter. I should have realised Grievous would lock down all the ships." He frowned as he considered his options. He had made sure to wipe all records from the ship before leaving it. He was just glad that he had his lightsaber crystal with him, which he had once contemplated leaving on his fighter when he had arrived, but something had made him take it. He had, however, left his Jedi robes.

"Plus Jedi robes too," added Bro. "Thought you should know that they've upped security again. The order is to find the Jedi and kill on sight."

Complications seemed to be piling up every day.

"Grievous knows me well enough. We fought enough times in the Clone Wars that we have a rivalry going on. But if he's working with my uncle then why hasn't he realised which Jedi it is?" queried Obi-Wan. That still surprised him.

"They're not using Kenobi," answered Bro serenely. "They seem to be keeping that little fact a secret."

"Probably smart. If Grievous found out that they were Kenobi then he'd use them to draw me out because he would correctly assume that the Jedi here would be me," theorised Obi-Wan. Grievous was likely to take that logic. "I've got to be more careful."

"Or we just go out and fight," suggested Bro mildly, a little grin pulling at his lips. "We've got all the intelligence we need. Can we really get anything more by hiding and watching from afar?"

Obi-Wan sighed. He was afraid of this. "I'm wary of attacking until security dies down but with my star-fighter discovered that is going to be make things very difficult. I don't have my lightsaber either…" Though he could probably make a crude lightsaber from pieces scattered around the base. His crystal remained in a pouch on his belt.

"We've got a resistance," said Bro. "A place where we can fight back from. Better to start fighting then wait until we all lose hope."

Bro's words summarised how Obi-Wan felt. He wanted to be cautious but he also wanted to instil hope in them: that there was a way to save the planet.

He had to make a move, regardless of the stringent security that Grievous had put in place.

Obi-Wan sighed. "Ok. We'll make a move, but we need to plan. I'd rather my identity not be uncovered." He saw Bro open his mouth to speak but he quickly hurried on. "I'm not going to let anyone go out there in battle without me. I can always hide my identity if we do gain the attention of Grievous."

Bro relented. "If you need anything…"

"I will ask," answered Obi-Wan. "I will call a meeting tomorrow morning. There we will discuss targets and opportunities. And, if you think of anything, any place that would make a suitable target, then please put it forth on the table. Not knowing this planet well I am at a slight disadvantage."

Bro grinned.

* * *

Three days later, two strike teams set out from the base just before dawn. Obi-Wan had chosen to make a statement to Grievous. This meant moving by night and attacking during the day, preferably as the sun went down. However Grievous regularly had patrols scouting throughout the day, therefore it made more sense to hide until closer to the evening before making a move.

In each strike team there were eight people. Each person had a buddy: someone to look after. And each person had their assigned task.

The idea was for them to attack one of the minor Separatist slave encampments: one of which had been located about four miles to the west of the resistances base. It was close enough a target but also far enough away that if the attack went wrong most of the people would be able to escape.

Obi-Wan crouched in the long grass. Bro lay beside him, the two having paired up for this mission. Owen had volunteered to lead the other group, much to Obi-Wan's surprise.

The sun had set nearly ten minutes ago. Above them the starry sky twinkled and its light shone down on them, lighting their way.

Obi-Wan moved forward, crouching low in the long grass, his team following behind him. He would attack first, distracting the droids long enough for Owen's team to rescue the slaves.

He held one blaster in his right hand. Tempting as it had been to construct a new lightsaber he had decided against it. Better to make it harder for Grievous to find the Jedi by using weapons one would not normally use. Every one of his team members wore a hood and a mask covering their faces, with just their eyes to be seen.

Bro was just behind him, signalling to the other members of the team to follow.

The encampment was the bare basic. Battle droids and super battle droids guarded the prisoners at night: they were sleeping under tent fabric that had been woven above their heads to protect them from the elements. Why Grievous kept them out in the open was a mystery to Obi-Wan, though he figured it was probably a way of trying to trap him.

Since Grievous had correctly assumed that a Jedi was on Stewjon, he would try everything he possibly could to capture or kill him. The problem was whatever Obi-Wan chose to do would always have risks attached to it. When he had revealed to the other team members who had volunteered for this mission that Grievous was likely to be looking for him and that anywhere they went would possibly be a trap, those that had volunteered hadn't cared: they wanted to free their world.

Obi-Wan was grateful for their support.

"Ok," he breathed, whispering into a short-line communicator he and his brother had constructed together which would enable short communications between the two. "Are you in position?"

"Ready," came Owen's reply.

Obi-Wan nodded, though his small action wouldn't be noticed. "We're going in."

Suddenly standing up, Obi-Wan yelled "NOW!"

The other seven team members all rose from their positions in the long grass and ran right at the droid encampment. The droids reacted quickly, moving into position to attack back, as Obi-Wan's group ran in all directions, working as an efficient team to destroy the droids. In his rough estimation there were around fifty droids.

The Force aided his aim and he swivelled, twisting and turning as he took out droids one by one, with his team mates holding his back, watching out for one another.

It was over quickly.

Owen's group had already roused and rescued the prisoners. There were around fifteen prisoners, seven of them were children.

Even in the darkening sky their attack on this base would be noticed.

"We're fighting back against the Separatists. You can come with us to safety or you can run and hide," said Obi-Wan, laying out their options. "You don't have to fight if you don't want to."

Not surprisingly they all chose to return to the resistance's base.

* * *

If there was one advantage to Obi-Wan's sudden attacks on Grievous' forces over the following few weeks were that the droid general simply could not predict where he would strike next.

They did not attack every night, but planned their movements, facilitating an attack when they could.

It soon became apparent that all the slaves were transferred to a built-up security centre located just outside of the capital. This prevented Obi-Wan from rescuing anyone as the risk in attacking that base was suicidal – and if Obi-Wan attempted it then he would have to build himself a lightsaber.

There was no way he could infiltrate the prison without a lightsaber.

"Obi-Wan?"

He looked up from where he sat at the maps. He should have been contemplating his next move but he'd been drifting off to sleep when his mother and father had arrived. He felt suddenly wary, as if something had gone _wrong_ and his alertness picked right up.

"What is it?" he swallowed.

"Owen has brought someone back to base after his reconnaissance mission," Ben Kenobi said. "Someone who we did not expect…"

Obi-Wan stilled. "Who is it?" He had a feeling he knew.

"It's Danja, your cousin," his mother answered quietly.

"This worries you…" trailed off Obi-Wan.

"In a way it does," replied Ben. "Owen has brought him back here. He could be bugged. We've run all security checks and he's clean."

Obi-Wan nodded thoughtfully, stroking his chin. "But he could still be carrying something that could be undetectable." This was problematic. He and Owen had gained a little respect for one another over the month they had been working together. It would be a shame if his brother had made a critical error which allowed the Separatists to find their base. "He shouldn't have brought him back here…"

The Force was strangely silent. His hand slipped into his pocket where he kept his lightsaber crystal. What could he do? The obvious answer was that he had to go and interrogate Danja and ensure he was safe.

"I will go and talk to him," he finally answered. "But I'd like you both to be there."

His mother and father exchanged looks. "Is it because this is such a family affair that you believe we have to be?" Ben asked.

Obi-Wan shrugged. "I don't know." And that was him being completely honest. He really didn't know why he had said that.

_You will find that a lot of what is happening here is for a reason… _

Qui-Gon's voice echoed briefly in his head but remained silent, not alluding to anything more. Obi-Wan didn't deliberately ignore his former Master's words but it felt like to him that the Force had drawn him back to Stewjon in its time in need: as if he had a destiny to fulfil – much like Anakin had done as the Chosen One.

Shaking his head and wishing that he could actually have a good night's sleep without being interrupted, he made his way to where Owen had brought his cousin in.

* * *

Keeping in mind that he had overheard Danja speaking to Michael Kenobi and his apparent reservations to their alliance with Grievous, Obi-Wan walked to the entrance of the facility. His parents remained behind him.

His cousin was standing beside Owen, his facial expressions inhibited worry as he watched Obi-Wan carefully.

"Am I to understand that you are Danja Kenobi?" Obi-Wan folded his arms. It wasn't an ideal place to interrogate someone but it was better than bringing him into the main control room.

The man nodded, his scruffy hair falling into his eyes. "I am."

"He found me, Obi-Wan," said Owen carefully. "He came to me of his own violation."

Obi-Wan's gaze slid to his brother's and then back again. "Is this true?"

Danja nodded.

Obi-Wan couldn't get a read of him in the Force and that made him suspicious. He had in mind the conversation he had overheard between Danja and his father when he had rescued Alex. He, himself, had said that the young man had seemed reluctant in helping his father… It just felt wrong that for most of his life Danja had sided with his father and now he appeared to have turned against him. "Why do you want to join us?"

Danja swallowed, his eyes flickering between Owen and Obi-Wan. "What my father is doing is wrong. And… and we know that a Jedi is here… But I never thought it would be _you_!"

"The fact that I'm family doesn't mean I can actually do any good for this planet," stated Obi-Wan, though he hoped that he was at least doing something.

"Oh but you are!" Danja nodded vigorously. "That General Grievous didn't expect a Jedi to be here. He thought the planet would be easy to take without alerting the Republic! He's having to ensure everything is under armed guard and patrols are multiplied. Your attacks are bold."

Obi-Wan frowned. "Then why hasn't Grievous tried to calculate my next move?" That was what the droid general usually did and most of the time he was frighteningly accurate in guessing what his Jedi opponents would do next.

"Because you are so random in where you choose to attack that when he thinks he knows where you are going to strike, you don't!" reported Danja eagerly. Sweat was beading on his face, as if he wanted to show that he was being honest.

Stroking his chin, Obi-Wan contemplated the young man. There was something off about his cousin. Something that he couldn't place. It was as if there was a slight warning vibrating through the Force over his intentions. "And after years of being with your father, you just decide to turn you back on him?"

"Yes."

The problem Obi-Wan now had was since Owen had led Danja to their base he couldn't let him go otherwise their location would be revealed and he couldn't trust him either. Owen had put him in a tricky spot.

"You know I can't let you leave, don't you?" he prompted, testing the waters to see what the reaction would be.

"I wouldn't betray you," said Danja.

Obi-Wan's eyebrows rose. Suspicions rose and he contemplated the man. "People I've loved have betrayed me throughout my lifetime, all because I was manipulated by Count Dooku. I thought they betrayed me. It's very difficult for me to extend my trust to someone I do not know." He looked around at his parents and at his brother. "They have my trust because they have stood by me."

"If you have to keep me prisoner I don't care. I just want to get away from my father!" blurted out Danja. It sounded like he was almost afraid of something, yet the Force would not yield to him why he should be worrying about his cousin.

Minutes passed and Obi-Wan couldn't make up his mind.

A hand clasped his shoulder and he realised his father was holding his shoulder. "I think you should let him stay. If anyone, it would be Danja who would join us."

Taking a deep breath, Obi-Wan let it out, relaxing his posture. "You can stay, but I am going to have to confine you until we reach a point where we can help one another. Does that seem acceptable?" It would have to be because Obi-Wan just felt that something was all wrong with this.

Danja nodded. "I don't mind. I can understand not wanting to trust me."

Obi-Wan inclined his head. "Owen, I'm putting you in charge of Danja. Since you brought him in you are responsible for him."

His brother accepted this. "I thought you might say that. Can he share my quarters?" Owen, like his parents, had a room to himself.

"It's the only way you are going to keep an eye on him, isn't it?" answered Obi-Wan. He still felt wary. What was he missing?

"True," admitted Owen.

"Now, I have things I need to finish off." Obi-Wan inclined his head to his parents and started to walk away, feeling awkward.

But there was one thing on his mind that he knew he had to do now. Whether he liked it or not, he did need his lightsaber. He'd just have to hope that he could find corresponding parts here in the base that would enable him to construct a new one.

With Danja now here, Obi-Wan just felt that he would need it soon.

At the back of his mind, he felt the looming sense of betrayal heading straight towards him.

* * *

Owen knew what he was doing was wrong. He knew his family would loathe him for what he was about to do, what he was going to arrange. But it was the only way. Truth was that he had been arranging this for a week now on the quiet whenever he went out on spying on the enemy. Obi-Wan would hate him for what he was intending to do, but what other choice was there?

Obi-Wan had felt that there was something wrong with Danja's story. Owen had to admit his brother's instincts were very good because he was right in assuming Danja was here for more than just protection or to aid against his own father.

Danja was here because Owen had requested his help.

He slipped in through the door and found Danja sitting beside the wall, his shoulders slumped.

Alex was with Rena in a room a few doorways down. Owen held a glass of juice out towards his cousin, who took it and gratefully drank it.

Owen closed the door behind him, walking into the dull light flickering above them. "Sorry about the cold meeting earlier… my brother doesn't trust you."

Danja leaned forward. "He's right not to considering what you are planning."

Owen cocked his head to the side. "But you agree that we have to do this, don't you?"

"I don't know," answered Danja quietly. "You are betraying your people. And I'm betraying mine."

"But it is for the greater good," countered Owen. "We're not going to win this. My brother can't see that. I thought he was right when he took us into hiding but he's done nothing worthwhile in that month. Little attacks against the enemy? We're not going to win back our planet. And no one knows that the Separatists are here! Stewjon may be in Republic space but its right on the edge!" He ran a hand down his face. "We've got to take action… and unfortunately I have to betray my own brother to do what it will take to free my people!"

Danja snorted. "I don't agree with my father, you know that. I never agreed with him anyway. I only followed my brother because I didn't want to lose him. You're lucky, you have a Jedi as your brother. They're capable of forgiveness: Maje isn't even if he has some doubts now."

Owen sighed. "Obi-Wan will probably die. He won't have a chance to forgive me." That was his one regret. He had seen his brother at work, watched him in his role as a Jedi, using his abilities to help others and to plan and make efficient attacks that spared his people and those that he intended to save. His brother never put himself first, only others. But Owen was going against all that… The philosophy that Obi-Wan lived by would betray him in the end.

And Owen would be the one to do it.

"There are four star-ships cleared for space travel. My father has arranged for your passage off-world. General Grievous is unaware of this bargain as he will be preoccupied here when you make your escape. All he will know is intelligence will be received that gives him co-ordinates to attack. Maje will meet you at the hanger just outside Sti. And remember, and my father bade me to tell you this: do not come back."

Owen's lips curled upwards. "Noted." He was doing this to save his son and his family. His feelings told him that his parents, his sister and his brother-in-law would remain behind. He would be shunned for his betrayal but what else could he do?

It was the only way to save not only himself and Alex, but also his planet.

**To be continued…**

**Please let me know what you think! **

**The time-skip of two/three weeks was put in because I didn't want to go round in circles of having Obi-Wan making the same attacks against Grievous' forces to rescue others. It would get dull very quickly so that is why I skipped ahead because after that first attack, that was what they were mostly doing when they found a good target. And I didn't think it needed repeating. **

**Obi-Wan is more like the General he was in the Clone Wars but he still has that fear of failure which is why he doesn't act and needs Bro to push him into doing so. The fact that at the end of this chapter he has the feeling that he will need his lightsaber shows that he is moving forward into returning to be the Jedi he once was. **

**And what is going on with Owen and Danja? I'm staying silent on that one… :D If anyone can guess I'll give you a metaphorical cookie! **

**Next chapter: **I'd give a hint here but it would really spoil the chapter. Hopefully I will post again sometime next week.

**Until next time! **

**the-writer1988 **


	11. Chapter 11: Betrayed

**A/N) This chapter I hope is exciting… Thank you to everyone who commented!**

* * *

**The Protector**

**Chapter 11: Betrayed**

The early hours of the following night found Obi-Wan with his legs crossed and resting quietly in a corner in one of the long corridors that led from the control centre to the training room. Around him people slept, or talked quietly. Most had blankets wrapped around their bodies. Small children were curled up beside their parents: the conditions were cramped but it was better than being forced to work as a slave.

Obi-Wan submerged himself in the Force, focusing on the components that lay scattered before him. He didn't feel that he was ready to own a lightsaber again but he couldn't keep turning his back on it. It just felt like that he would need it. Perhaps having one would facilitate his acceptance as to who he was now. He was more hardened, sadder than he ever had been but here on Stewjon he had realised at how contented he was.

His hands moved through the air as he focused his energies upon the components, imaging them sliding together, feeling his way to the heart of the device, his crystal spinning in the air. He remembered what it was like to make his own lightsaber for the first time on Illum. There he had faced his fears of not ever being chosen as a Padawan, but in the here and now he was facing his troubles, his past.

He had killed Dooku with a lightsaber. He could have stopped it but since his talk with his parents and his sister he had found that he could not feel guilty over something that was not his fault. He had accepted that Dooku had made his choice: the Count had killed himself to make Obi-Wan feel guilty, to ensure that he would never forgive himself and enable his complete fall to the dark side of the Force: not through anger but through guilt instead.

The Count had failed in his final goal: for Obi-Wan had forgiven himself that night when he had told his parents the truth, even if it had taken him a few weeks later before he realised he had made that significant step.

Falling further into the Force, Obi-Wan discovered the remnants of the bond he had with Anakin. He had torn it in his anger and misguidance at his friend. The strands of the bond still lay scattered. He missed Anakin.

Could shattered bonds be repaired?

That had never been tried before.

Could it be done by him alone or did Anakin have to be there?

Obi-Wan put that thought to one side; that was something he would have to deal with later if he returned to the Jedi Temple. There was no guarantee that he would either.

And that was when he sunk so deep into the Force that it opened up before him. Images came to him, blurred images, not easy to interpret but enough, for just a brief second, for him to see himself on his knees in front of Grievous. Clouds swirled in front of the image preventing him from seeing anything further and Obi-Wan's eyes shot open as he fell out of his mediation posture.

His hand was clutched tightly around a lightsaber hilt.

He stared at it, transfixed at the design. He had been lucky to have found material that could be used in lightsaber construction, but what he had found had been enough to make a workable one. The design he had unconsciously modelled it on was his own old lightsaber, the hilt had had left behind with Anakin at the Temple.

What did that mean? Was it significant? He hadn't even considered what the design might look like when he had finished – it hadn't been a conscious decision to construct it in the way his old one was.

He held it in his hand, inspecting every inch of it, ensuring that all the components were in the right place. Getting to his feet he quietly moved through the sleeping people until he came to the storage room. Walking into the room, he shut the door behind him.

His thumb on the activation switch he waited, feeling worried at what he should expect. His lightsaber came to life, the blue blade shining elegantly in the air. It felt strange to hold a lightsaber in his hand again, it almost felt that he was a youngling again, handling a lightsaber for the first time. Marvel hit at him and he felt a warm feeling rush up his arm.

This was his lightsaber.

The Force had bequeathed with him a working blade. Did it except him back? Did the light side deem him ready? Obi-Wan sucked in deep breaths, calming himself as he considered his future. He had come to Stewjon seeking peace and healing and he had found it: until Alex's kidnapping when things had spiralled completely out of his control.

Yet had he run away?

No, he hadn't.

He had embraced it, acted accordingly to how he knew best. He had acted like a Jedi should.

Was he truly ready to wield a lightsaber blade once again?

_If you weren't, your guilt would have prevented you from making a working lightsaber. _

Obi-Wan grimaced. "That may be so but after this is all over will I still feel like that?" he answered Qui-Gon aloud.

_It is your conscience that you have to learn to control. Right now you have something to live and fight for because you want to prove your worth. You want to prove to yourself that you are still a Jedi and unconsciously you are making that happen. But what if you returned to Coruscant, what then? What if you saw Padmé? _

Obi-Wan swallowed. Guilt welled up inside him. Padmé had suffered a near-serious injury in the final battle between two Sith Lords, a fallen Jedi Master and a Jedi Knight. The Senator had been stabbed through the gut with a lightsaber. But it had been Obi-Wan's lightsaber that had done the damage. Obi-Wan had been holding the blade.

But it had been Dooku who had Force-pulled Padmé onto Obi-Wan's blade.

Padmé had survived but had lost her natural ability to have children. Obi-Wan hated himself for that. When he had last seen Padmé she had urged him not to blame himself. He had told her that he would try not to but it wasn't that easy to not do so.

"I can't blame myself for that," he said slowly, "but I won't ever forget what I did."

_Do you feel you cannot be in her company? _

"I feel that she would judge me but I know deep down that she wouldn't. She's still my friend regardless of that. She'd want me to move on. But forgetting isn't as easy. I took her ability to have children away."

_Did you? _

Obi-Wan felt completely stumped. "What do you mean?"

_In this day in age, especially the Kaminoans, new tissue can always be regrown…_

"So she can still have children?" breathed Obi-Wan.

But Qui-Gon did not reply.

Had Padmé and Anakin kept something back from him deliberately or had they not realised their selves?

Was his guilt really for nothing?

He knew then that to solve his feelings that he would have to return to Coruscant. But he wouldn't abandon his people for the sake of his own confused feelings. His family came first: they were people who needed him most.

Disengaging his lightsaber, he clipped it onto his belt, feeling strange at the familiar weight that he hadn't carried for over a month, and walked out of the storage room. He had work to do.

* * *

It was a few days later that everything was ready. Owen had made all the arrangements. Guilt gnawed at him as the time came for him to leave. He had tried to sound out his parents and sister if they would take a way off planet if there was a way but they had all refused. They would take their duty and stick to it, even if it meant death.

Rena had been the most suspicious of all, probing him as to why he was even inquiring to them about this. He was certain she had realised what he was planning on doing. But he also knew his brother remained unaware. Obi-Wan was completely in the dark about what was about to happen.

Alex was sleeping, drugged to sleep so that he could not stop his father. The young boy had become very close to his lost uncle: the uncle that Owen had hated, who he now respected in more ways than one. He had saved Alex from the Separatists and yet he planned to betray everyone.

_I have to do this. _

It was the only way he was convincing himself that he could go through with it.

He was doing it for his son. For Alex's survival, so that he could grow up on a world without conflict or strife.

Who knew how many people he loved would die because of his actions? Would they ever forgive him?

Carefully, Owen fixed a blaster to his belt, picked up his son and quickly but quietly moved through the base. He was due to go out on duty in thirty minutes. By leaving early he hoped to not raise suspicion. Danja was back in his quarters, under the watchful eye of one of the guards who had been assigned to his quarters whilst Owen did his duty.

He only had one small bag of possessions.

Owen reached the exit, input the security code giving him access to the outside and he stepped out. The sun was just starting to come up as he quickly jogged away, his heart beating fast in his chest. His conscience yelled at him to return, to not do this, but he could not.

He kept going.

Five miles east of the base was an abandoned speeder, placed there by Danja's brother. Laying his son down on the back seat, Owen powered the speeder up and sped it across the landscape, unaware that he was being watched.

* * *

Maje waited beside the shuttle, his eyes peeled for any sign of the speeder that would contain Owen Kenobi and his worthless son. He didn't like the idea of simply letting him go but his father had ordered him to. It would make it much more potent for Owen to live as a traitor rather than to die as a martyr.

Still, at least they would have the Jedi who was leading the resistance against them.

In the distance a small speck appeared.

There he was. Owen was on time.

The speeder started to slow, stopping just yards away from where Maje waited.

A figure clambered out of the speeder and hefted something from a seat and started to walk across the grass towards him.

"Maje?" Owen Kenobi said as he approached.

Maje grinned. "I never thought you would be one to abandon the people."

"Yes, well, some things are more important," muttered Owen, looking down at his sleeping son. "I want him to be safe. I didn't want to be involved in this…"

"You should be thankful we even agreed to you request. Good thing you have something to trade! Danja is in position?"

Owen nodded. "He is."

"Good. And the Jedi?"

"Knows nothing," confirmed Owen. "And…" he bit his lip, "who he is makes my betrayal even worse."

Maje laughed, folding his arms across his chest. "Which of those mystic sorcerers is it?"

Owen breathed out slowly. "My brother."

"Well, well, how convenient. I'm sure Grievous will have fun dealing with him." smirked Maje. "He's not at all happy that a Jedi is here… but the fact that it is your own brother? That makes your desertion even more beautiful." He held out his hand. "The keys to the shuttle. Circle around the planet and then go into orbit. There is a Separatist fleet above but not circling the entire world. And remember, don't come back, or your mother will die. Do you have the information?"

Owen shivered. That was part of the deal to ensure his compliance in not betraying his uncle: make his mother's life a bargain he could not break. Michael had promised to protect her at all costs providing Owen gave him what he wanted.

He steeled his shoulders. "I won't." He reached into his pocket and drew out a data card. "Here. This contains the co-ordinates of our base."

"Then go," finished Maje, placing the keys in Owen's palm. "And good riddance. Oh, and if these co-ordinates are wrong we will know about it. We do have a contingency plan in place if these do not check out."

"They are the correct co-ordinates." Taking the keys, Owen boarded the shuttle, strapping his son into the seat behind him. Owen activated the engines, moving the joystick forward to lift the shuttle up into the sky.

As he veered the shuttle away, he didn't look back.

* * *

Obi-Wan knew something was wrong when he couldn't find Owen or Alex.

"OBI-WAN!"

He turned around in the corridor. Bro was running up to him, panting heavily. "What is it?"

"It's Owen…He's gone. He's betrayed us all. I didn't follow him the whole way but he took Alex with him and there is a Separatist droid army coming right for us. They've already taken out two of the sentries. And our alarms are down, the droids can walk in here easily!"

Obi-Wan swallowed, mindful of the people in the corridor who had heard Bro's statement. Fear was already spreading through them, mothers grabbing their children, already moving, hoping to escape. "Is Grievous with them?"

Bro nodded numbly. "He's at the head of the army."

"Bro," he began calmly. "Get everyone as quickly as you can out of here." He raised his voice. "Anyone willing to fight, grab your weapons and prepare to fight! If we survive this we can consider Owen's betrayal later!"

Obi-Wan turned and started to run back down the corridor, his lightsaber hilt already in his hand. He had had the feeling that he would need it but he hadn't expected to need it so quickly. He tried to ignore the hurt feelings that roared up inside him with Owen's betrayal. He could not dwell on that, not now.

All around him people were running in the opposite direction, save for those that were willing to fight alongside him.

As he moved further towards the entrance, he heard the sound of blastershots echoing through the corridors. Screams echoed and Obi-Wan threw himself round the corner. His blue blade came spluttering to life.

General Grievous stood in the corridor, surrounded by battle droids. His organic eyes found Obi-Wan and widened in surprise. "KENOBI!"

"Grievous," stated Obi-Wan, swallowing the lump that was forming in his throat as he considered his rival. He held his lightsaber up in a guard position. Those that had joined him to hold off the Separatists, lined up just behind him facing the droids, blasters pointed straight at the battle droids.

"So, you are the Jedi causing my forces so much trouble," Grievous growled, coughing slightly. "I never would have thought it was you I was contending with!"

Obi-Wan smirked. "The last time we met Grievous you got one up on me, I won't let that happen this time!"

Grievous laughed, his arms moving to his sides, taking hold of two of the lightsabers he had hanging around his waist. "I have the advantage, Kenobi! My forces vastly outnumber yours! If you think you can prevent me from capturing all of my slaves then you are mistaken!"

Coldness swept through Obi-Wan's body. He knew. The droid General knew where the other exit of the base was, where it would come out. He had forces already waiting for them.

They had lost even before the fight had even begun. It was a total betrayal of all their secrets.

_Why Owen? _

He almost felt like giving up but a part of him yelled at him to not do so. He levelled his blade, watching wearily. Grievous would not attack first, not in an enclosed space. The battle droids had their blasters trained mostly on him.

"Obi-Wan, what do we do?" asked one of his fighters. There was fear in the other man's face, his blonde hair falling into his eyes.

Grievous had every advantage. If they fought these brave men would die. He had no way of knowing if the blasters were set for kill or stun.

Even before he would reach Grievous he would be shot.

"Attack me and your little fighters will be killed, Kenobi!" rasped Grievous. "Do you really want to feel responsible for more deaths?"

Deep breaths kept him going. He was ready to fight, even if it meant his own death. But he couldn't risk the deaths of so many others.

"Drop your weapons," Obi-Wan ordered. His lightsaber blade disappeared as he removed his thumb from the activation button. Glancing at the hilt, he threw it at Grievous' feet. "I surrender."

All around him his men did the same, their blasters cluttering to the floor.

Grievous' laughter echoed around the corridor and the droid General stomped forward, his eyes fixed entirely upon the Jedi that had long defied him. He stopped right in front of Obi-Wan.

Obi-Wan held his ground, not letting Grievous intimidate him.

A metal hand came out, clasping the Jedi around the throat. He was thrown into the wall, his head hitting the side of it. Was this the end? Would Grievous kill him now? But the droid general was walking away, his metallic hands behind his back.

"Take Kenobi back to the city. He will be publicly executed once he has been interrogated. He may still be hiding information from us that could be of some use. The other slaves who escaped us, including the children, will be starved for a week for their defiance in joining this Jedi scum!"

Battle droid arms grasped Obi-Wan from beneath his armpits and they hoisted him up. His head sagged as he was led away.

He had failed.

And he had been betrayed.

Again.

**To be continued…**

**Please let me know what you think! **

**Is Obi-Wan's guilt over Padmé's injury for nothing? I'm not answering that. Owen has betrayed his family. And, well, everyone is now captured. No fight between Obi-Wan and Grievous this time, partly because the stakes are quite high and he doesn't want to risk fighting Grievous if it means people will die. Those that may remember 'Dangerous Games', Grievous was the one who captured Obi-Wan at the start of the story, so I'm referring to that battle when Obi-Wan says that Grievous got one up on him last time they met. **

**The next chapter… **Interrogation and execution…

**I hope to update again next week but it all depends really. Slowly getting through all the uni work I have to do. In 2 weeks I have the major exam (argh!) and apparently I am stressed according to my doctors which isn't a good thing so I'm just trying to get as much done as I can without getting stressed out. Writing fic relaxes me but we will see. **

**Until next time!**

**the-writer1988 **


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